Sailing charity passes £35,000 fundraising milestone
by Mark Hardaker 12 May 2018 11:08 BST
Staff from Turn to Starboard are appealing for supporters to help raise £100,000 in 2018 © Turn to Starboard
A sailing charity is celebrating after reaching a massive milestone in their bid to buy a new training boat.
Turn to Starboard has passed the £35,000 mark in their quest to raise £100,000 in a year for a training yacht to help injured veterans. The Cornish charity help Armed Forces personnel affected by military operations and their families by taking them sailing.
Fantastic fundraising efforts has meant the Float-A-Boat campaign has kept up momentum over the past four months.
Under the sweltering heat, Falklands veteran Andrew Smith recently completed the London Marathon and raised an impressive £3,358 for the campaign. Former surgeon Trevor Crofts is currently trekking a gruelling 710 kilometres from Pamplona to Santiago in Spain and has raised £3488 in donations so far.
On Friday May 18, a team of brave volunteers will climb into two inflatable life rafts and be floated out into Falmouth Harbour to battle the wind and waves. More than £5300 has been raised for The 24-Hour Life Raft Survival Challenge which aims to test participants' courage, endurance and teamwork skills while raising funds.
Turn to Starboard CEO and founder, Shaun Pascoe, said he was 'delighted' with the progress of the campaign so far.
"It's fantastic that so many of our supporters have got behind the charity so wholeheartedly," Shaun said. "The demand for our service is exceeding capacity and we need an additional training boat to help more veterans gain new skills and qualifications which will help them long into the future. It's been a fantastic four months for fundraising and we're now well on our way to achieving our target of £100,000."
The Float-A-Boat campaign is a first for the charity, who traditionally fundraise through major military organisations, grant making trusts, corporate partners and individual donors.
Supporters can get involved by texting TURN25 £10 to 70007 to make a £10 donation to the campaign. Other donation amounts are £1, £2, £5 or £10 and a standard message rate will also apply (e.g. TURN25 £5).
For more information about the charity call 01326 314262 or visit www.turntostarboard.co.uk.