April Report by Andy Lenaghan
It’s a sad day, starting on what will be our final report for the Hayling Islander. The Islander has always been a great supporter of local charities and organisations that support the Community. None more so than Hayling Island Businessmens’ Club, who have benefitted over the years from publicity for our fund raising events, without which possibly it would have been much harder raising the funds to keep our Community Mini Bus on the road. Our Bus is on the road seven days per week and is supplied free of charge to users, subject to being a Community group. We will all miss the Islander, not just for the support but the monthly read about everything that is happening on our Island.
By the time you read this it will be border line if it is before or after our annual BBQ, our main fundraising event. This year already it is a total sell out with people scrambling for tickets which are just not available, so just remember, buy early next year and believe us when we say they are selling fast, it’s not a marketing gimmick!! As we will be unable to report after the BBQ, we would like to thank Northney Farm for the continued support from them in allowing us to hold this event there every year. It is not without some inconvenience they allow it, as a great deal of equipment has to be moved and the barn cleared, so all round it is a fantastic and willing gesture from them. We would also like to thank all the local businesses that support us with the donation of raffle prizes, discounts on supplies and additional manpower we need for the event.
One of our other popular events is the Pig Racing, which this year is being held at the Community centre again and it is on the 9th November. All our events will be on our website or our Facebook page, so please follow us there. We will hopefully be given some editorial by the Portsmouth News to publicise our events, as well as advertising with them from time to time.
Our thanks go to Hayling Hardware for allowing us to hold a collection toward our running expenses. On a not so warm Saturday with the odd shower thrown in we managed to raise £169. Thanks also to our residents, who were so generous and supportive of our aims. It amazed us how many people expressed their thanks for the Bus during the course of our collection. Most of these were the elderly being regular users who would not be able to get to the various luncheon clubs, but for the Bus and the volunteer drivers.
Lastly, thanks to Simon Carter the editor of the Islander for his support during his time at the helm. Simon took time to visit the club, researched our history and gave us a recent wonderful editorial to help increase our profile within the Community. https://www.facebook.com/hibc.org.uk/ http://www.hibc.org.uk/
Contact us if you wish to know more about HIBC or wish to join as a local Businessman, Manager or maybe an enthusiast who has something to offer the club. E-Mail : secretary@hibc.org.uk