Anstruther lifeboat author gives book proceeds to RNLI during May fundraiser

Richard MacDonald, author of the award-winning novel, A Distant Field, has arranged for the RNLI to receive funds for all books sold on May 30th. For every copy sold on Kindle the RNLI will receive £2.00; for physical copies, the RNLI will receive £1.00.

With the usual events, shop openings and activities unable to take place, fundraising in aid of the RNLI looks a lot different this year. Richard MacDonald volunteer crew at Anstruther lifeboat station and author explains: “With RNLI charity shops closed during the Covid-19 pandemic, I knew the RNLI needed funding more than ever. So, I contacted my editor, Julia Dye, who happens to be an Auxiliary with the US Coast Guard. She liked my idea. As people are reading more during the lockdown, it seemed like a great opportunity to help out the RNLI”.

Erin Feeney, RNLI Community Manager for the East of Scotland, said: “Given the current situation and impact on regular fundraising activities, it is fantastic to see what volunteers like Richard have planned to raise funds in aid of the RNLI, and we are very grateful for these efforts at this time.”

A Distant Field tells the story of two brothers who endure the torpedoing of the RMS Lusitania and go on to enlist in the Seaforth Highlanders. Together they survive the Quintinshill railway disaster before being deployed to the sun-baked battlefields of Gallipoli. The novel won the 2019 Independent Press Awards for military fiction, and was awarded a gold medal for historical fiction by the Military Writers Society of America.

The novel can be found online with the activity in aid of the RNLI running for 24 hours on May 30th, 2020.

In respect of the Kindle format of Licensed Products:

£2.00 from the sale of this product will be paid in support of the RNLI. Payments are made to RNLI (Sales) Ltd (which pays all its taxable profits to the RNLI, a charity registered in England and Wales (209603), Scotland (SC037736), the Republic of Ireland (20003326) the Bailiwick of Jersey (14), the Isle of Man and the Bailiwick of Guernsey and Alderney, of West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset BH15 1HZ

In respect of the paperback format of Licensed Products:

£1.00 from the sale of this product will be paid in support of the RNLI. Payments are made to RNLI (Sales) Ltd (which pays all its taxable profits to the RNLI, a charity registered in England and Wales (209603), Scotland (SC037736), the Republic of Ireland (20003326) the Bailiwick of Jersey (14), the Isle of Man and the Bailiwick of Guernsey and Alderney, of West Quay Road, Poole, Dorset BH15 1HZ

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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