REGULARS from Roadwater’s Valiant Soldier Inn have handed over another £1,000 to the RNLI, maintaining their outstanding fundraising record for the charity.
The money was raised partly through sponsorship for the Valiant Soldier teams which competed in last summer’s Minehead RNLI raft race and partly from collections and special events at the pub.
It will now go towards meeting the £52,000 target the Minehead station has been asked to raise by RNLI headquarters to pay for a new D-class lifeboat which is due to go into service in December next year.
More than £20,000 has already been banked, and although the station was refused a grant from the Hinkley Point mitigation fund, station officials say they are confident there is enough local support to enable the money to be found.
Minehead RNLI chairman Bryan Stoner said the Valiant Soldier regulars were among the station’s most loyal and generous supporters.
“Year after year they have come up with £1,000 donations and we are extremely grateful for their dedication to the cause of saving lives at sea,” he said.
“I know it comes as immense reassurance to the crew when they are putting to sea in all kinds of conditions that they can always rely on support from people such as these.”
Because of staffing and safety concerns, there will be no HarbourFest or raft race this year but organisers say they hope both will be staged as normal in 2019.