Clyst Vale Community College raise over £1000 for Exmouth RNLI
On 11 November 2019 fourteen students from Clyst Vale Community College, together with school staff, Mrs Heather and Mr Marc Brooks, visited the Exmouth Lifeboat Station to present a cheque for £997.14 they had raised for Exmouth RNLI,together with £168.84 in cash and a cake for the lifeboat crew.
Mrs Padden explained that some years ago the school had become involved with Harry Patch, the last survivor of the trench warfare of World War One. He was then 109 years old, and was the oldest person in Europe. The proceeds from his book “The Last Tommy” all went to the RNLI, and the school have continued this tradition.
Harry’s story is used to teach the students about WW1, and every year on 22 September they hold a Harry Patch Day to raise funds. This year the challenge was for the students to paint a picture of the flowers in the school’s Harry Patch garden, which is filled with flowers from every country that fought in the Great War. The top fourteen entrants won a trip around the lifeboat station in Exmouth, and proceeds from the sale of the paintings, together with money raised from a cake bake, were handed over on the visit.
Then students thoroughly enjoyed the trip to the lifeboat station and were pleased to be able to donate such a significant amount to the local volunteer charity that saves lives at sea.
Chairman of the Exmouth RNLI Lifeboat Fundraising Committee, Robin Humphreys, said “It was particularly appropriate to welcome Clyst Vale Academy to the station on 11 November; Armistice Day. The pupils who attended were the winners of an art competition run by the Academy honouring Harry Patch, the last surviving armed forces veteran from the First World War. The pupils raised £1165.98 which they presented to the station along with a cake they had baked for the crew. The volunteers at Exmouth RNLI are extremely grateful to be chosen as the Academy’ s charity. All the monies donated will go towards the purchase of crew equipment and training; so they can continue to carry out their vital lifesaving work.”
Key facts about the RNLI
The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,000 lives.
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Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries
Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.