News
Red White and Blue Day
Red, White and Blue Day is a national fundraising event for schools which will take place on Friday, October 12, 2012. Serving personnel are asked to sacrifice a lot for their country, but we mustn't forget that their families make sacrifices too. So Red, White and Blue Day is all about raising money for Forces personnel and their families, with particular focus on the 170,000 Forces children living in the UK today.
ABF The Soldiers' Charity, the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund and the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity have joined forces for this project, and would love to see every school in the country support us by taking part in a day of fun activities: children can bring in £1 each and dress up in red, white and blue, schools can hold cake sales or pupils can come up with their own ways of getting involved.
It's a simple but effective way for all school children to show their support, not only for all of our Armed Forces but also for their friends and peers whose parents have dedicated themselves to serving their country.
The three national charities which support the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, the Army, and the Royal Air Force are of course keen to raise vital funds for servicemen and women and their families. The focus of the campaign will be on Service children, who are affected by the pressures and complications of life in the Armed Forces – including the mobility of Service families; parents being deployed overseas for long periods; and, worst of all, the ever present fear of Dad or Mum not returning home.
Last year more than 54,000 children from 175 schools took part in the first Red, White and Blue day. This year we are hoping to double our number and raise £100,000!
It's a simple but effective way for all school children to show their support, not only for all of our Armed Forces but also for their friends and peers whose parents have dedicated themselves to serving their country.
The three national charities which support the Royal Navy and Royal Marines, the Army, and the Royal Air Force are of course keen to raise vital funds for servicemen and women and their families. The focus of the campaign will be on Service children, who are affected by the pressures and complications of life in the Armed Forces – including the mobility of Service families; parents being deployed overseas for long periods; and, worst of all, the ever present fear of Dad or Mum not returning home.
Last year more than 54,000 children from 175 schools took part in the first Red, White and Blue day. This year we are hoping to double our number and raise £100,000!
Please register now at www.redwhiteblueday.co.uk where you will also find, posters, stories from Service children, plus many more ideas for your own Red, White and Blue Day.
You can also keep up-to-date via Twitter and Facebook. For general information please email us on support@redwhiteblueday.co.uk.
You can also keep up-to-date via Twitter and Facebook. For general information please email us on support@redwhiteblueday.co.uk.
Your contribution will help to fund the following:
• Paying for a new play park for Army children
• Trained youth workers to run after school clubs and activities on RAF stations
• Supporting a scheme for soldiers on operations to record bedtime stories for their children
• Paying for childcare facilities and building new games areas and play parks on 28 RAF stations
• Arranging grants to Naval charities
We hope that your school will be able to take part in this year's Red, White and Blue Day and help us to continue our work supporting the men, women and children of the Armed Forces community.
Thank you.
• Paying for a new play park for Army children
• Trained youth workers to run after school clubs and activities on RAF stations
• Supporting a scheme for soldiers on operations to record bedtime stories for their children
• Paying for childcare facilities and building new games areas and play parks on 28 RAF stations
• Arranging grants to Naval charities
We hope that your school will be able to take part in this year's Red, White and Blue Day and help us to continue our work supporting the men, women and children of the Armed Forces community.
Thank you.
Ashcroft Arts Centre in Fareham has been in receipt of a grant from the MOD Community Covenant Scheme and are running a project in 2012 to engage young people in five local schools with the Armed Forces. All the groups are visiting local historical sites and meeting people to find out about life in service. The groups are then working with a professional film company to create original short films which will be screened at the Ashcroft Forces Film Festival in July. For more information about the Ashcroft Arts Centre please visit www3.hants.gov.uk/ashcroft.
Dave Stouts "Long Walk Home" - Faslane to Bradford
Royal Navy Marine Engineer, David “Yorkie” Stout, left the navy after almost 30 years service on February 24th 2012. He handed his warrant card in at HMS Neptune, north of Glasgow, and is going to walk home.
Fair enough you might think; if he’s had a "wee dram" on his last day then leaving the car at home might be sensible.
However, Yorkie lives in Queensbury in West Yorkshire - 250 miles away!
Watch the video: http://youtu.be/S8HoF6Yof2E
This is going to be a real challenge as Yorkie, (47) is, by his own admission, is “Stout by name and stout by nature”, and is not used to long distance walking. He has been in training for the walk which he will tackle over two weeks.
Yorkie has chosen the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity to receive his sponsorship and he will be joined by others who will walk shorter distances for an array of charities. The Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity is a national charity which provides a better quality of life for serving and former naval service personnel. To sponsor Yorkie please visit http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/YorkieStout.
The long walk home
Royal Navy Marine Engineer, David “Yorkie” Stout, leaves the navy after almost 30 years service on February 24th 2012. Once he has handed his warrant card in at HMS Neptune, north of Glasgow, he is going to walk home. Fair enough you might think; if he’s had a wee dram on his last day then leaving the car at home might be sensible. However, Yorkie lives in Queensbury in West Yorkshire….250 miles away!
This is going to be a real challenge as Yorkie, (47) is, by his own admission, is “Stout by name and stout by nature”, and is not used to long distance walking. He has been in training for the walk which he will tackle over two weeks.
Yorkie has chosen the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity to receive his sponsorship and he will be joined by others who will walk shorter distances for an array of charities. The Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity is a national charity which provides a better quality of life for serving and former naval service personnel.
Hilary Jukes, Fundraising Co-ordinator for The Royal Navy & Royal Marines Charity said, “We are delighted that Yorkie has chosen to help the charity. Although he is leaving the Royal Navy, the charity will be there to help him in future (whenever he needs us) and his support will enable us to continue to support the whole naval family whether serving, injured or veterans, as well as supporting the families of the Royal Marines who are killed in action. For more information on the work of the charity please visit our website www.rnrmc.org.uk.”
Yorkie said after a training walk this morning, “I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with the Royal Navy and feel the charity walk is a novel and different way of leaving the service, and making that transition into civvy street.” Yorkie won’t be idle for long as he is setting up a business as a caravan engineer. To sponsor Yorkie please visit http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/YorkieStout. You can follow his progress on his blog at http://yorkiestout.blogspot.com. If you are interested in joining Yorkie and his friends on part of the walk please contact him via www.westyorkshirecaravanservicing.co.uk.
Submariner's tale raises money for charity
A children's story written by a serving submariner has been used to raise money for the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity (RNRMC).
Lieutenant Commander (Lt Cdr) Harry Nottley, who is currently serving at the Royal Navy Submarine School at HMS Raleigh, penned the story of 'Sammy the Submarine' back in 1996, as a way of explaining his job to his young children. With the Submarine School looking for ideas to raise money for the RNRMC, Lt Cdr Nottley was persuaded to get his story out of the loft for it to be printed and sold. The proceeds from the book added £450 to the charity pot.
The 44-year-old, from Plymstock said: "I was delighted at how quickly we sold the initial print run of 100 books and encouraged by the positive comments being made. With the second run of books also selling well, I quickly became aware that not all the books were being purchased for young children and that a significant amount were being bought by adults with a Service interest. Both my sons, Jack and Owen, have always liked the story and art work. Now that they are well into their teens I am pleased that, along with raising money for this worthwhile cause, there is the chance that it may be enjoyed by other children giving them a very basic introduction to the Submarine Service."
All together the Royal Navy Submarine School presented a cheque for £1,514 to the RNRMC. As well as the book, the money was raised through the sale of 'Sammy the Submarine' mugs, submarine memorabilia, such as polo shirts, coasters and wine, and coffee mornings within the school. Warrant Officer 1 Geoff Hurst was the co-ordinator of the charity efforts.
Receiving the cheque on behalf of the RNRMC, Cdre Chris Steel, retired, South West Ambassador for the charity, said: "The donation from the Submarine School represents considerable effort over the last 18 months, when taken alongside everyone's busy working life. It is typical of the excellent efforts to raise money for such a good cause."
Naval charities receive a massive lift from Pembroke
Eleven crew of minehunter stripped off for charity - not to produce a calendar, but to pump iron in the Gulf heat.
They lifted the equivalent of the ship's weight - 600 tonnes - in under two hours... and raised more than £1,300 for two naval charities.
The ‘Lift the Ship’ event took place while the Gulf-based mine hunter enjoyed a restful spell alongside in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates after a busy patrol.
The ship’s steward, AB(Logs) James Coombes, spotted the opportunity for one last big event before Pembroke's current crew returns home to the UK at the end of a seven-month deployment.
As the unofficial fitness instructor onboard, James press-ganged his fellow sailors (including the Commanding Officer Lt Cdr Richard Hutchings) to undertake this mammoth effort in order to raise money for Pembroke House and the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity.
James, 23, said:
“We’ve had a great tour of duty out here in the Middle East and, with a stint alongside sunny Abu Dhabi, I thought we should do something special for our Ship’s charities that do such brilliant work for the Royal Navy community.”
So how did they “lift” the ship? Each person had to bench press 20 tonnes, squat 18 tonnes, ‘bent over row’ lift 15 tonnes and mill press seven tonnes – that meant each person lifted heavy weights over 1700 times.
Amazingly, the extreme exercise session was completed in under two hours, leaving most feeling slightly tired to say the least! However, it was all worth it as over £1300 has been raised so far.
While the physical challenge is over the fund raising continues. Donations can still be made for a short while longer online at www.virginmoneygiving.com/team/hmspembroke.
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For media and events information please contact Nicola Harper T: 023 9254 8192 nicola.harper@rnrmc.org.uk
