Press Release...

PRESS RELEASE 26th July 2010

PORTGORDON HARBOUR CHARITY RAFT RACE & GALA DAY
SUNDAY 25TH JULY 2010

GENERAL

Portgordon’s 7th Annual Charity Raft Race and Gala Day has been hailed as a huge success by the Portgordon Community Harbour Group, the organisers of the event.
The harbour area was basked in sunshine throughout the day’s proceedings where a crowd of well over 1000 enjoyed a fantastic programme of events. Wave Radio, Dr Grays Hospital Radio once again did a tremendous job compering the proceedings while Harbour Group Secretary Bob Thomson, excelled in the difficult task of co-ordinating the packed programme of music, dancing, parades, displays and of course, the highlight of the afternoon, the charity raft race.

CLASSIC CARS & MOTORCYCLES

The day kicked off with a grand parade of classic cars and motorcycles, following Strathisla Pipe Band. Vehicles travelled from far and wide to attend the event and there was a marvellous selection of cars and motorcycles on display. There was also a display of vintage bicycles and a threshing machine, rekindling memories of days gone by.

CHILDRENS FANCY DRESS PARADE

Strathisla Pipe Band also led the children’s fancy dress parade from the Village Hall to the arena at the harbour. Mickey & Minnie Mouse were on hand to carry out the judging and present the prizes with 1st Prize going to 1 year old, Jay Clark of Tannancy Road, Portgordon who was Noddy. 2nd prize went to Fraser McKandie aged 3 from Duke Street as Humpty Dumpty complete with wall, and joint 3rd prize went to Fairy Princesses Molly and Rosie Murray (6 & 3), also of Duke Street, Portgordon.


DOG AGILITY DISPLAY

Returning by popular demand were Pets to Pros, the dog agility display under the guidance and training of Mr Gareth Williams. This event attracted a huge crowd around the arena with dogs (and owners) working in perfect harmony.

RAFT RACE

The main event of the afternoon was, as always, the raft race. This year’s event was special in that teams were asked to raise sponsorship for good causes and the Harbour Group also donated £100 to the winning teams choice of registered charity. The race was hotly contested with 6 rafts competing and thoroughly entertaining the huge crowd that gathered around the harbour. This years winners were the Buckie Firefighters (R White, V Cumming, A Murray and C Forbes). Their chosen charity was understandably the Firefighters Benevelent Fund. 2nd place were Gone Commando and 3rd place went to White Rose. The prestigious engraved paddle for the best raft entry went to Port Watch (Michelle Jack, Norma Kyle, Tracey Cheetham, and Lynn Reid). Port Watch also raised an incredible £500 in sponsorship for their charity, BARRK. Also competing were the Marine Hotel and the Superheroes. Mickey & Minnie were once again on hand to present the awards at the prizegiving ceremony. The Group were very grateful to the Burghead Sub Aqua Club who very kindly provided a safety boat for the race.


MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENT AND DANCING

There was a fantastic programme of musical entertainment and dancing throughout the afternoon. As well as Strathisla Pipe Band there was music from the Strathspey Fiddlers led by Mr Steve Brown and local singer group Mosaic. Excellent displays of Highland Dancing was provided by the Alison Munro School of Dance in Buckie and the very popular Skip 2 The Beat from Portsoy were at the gala for the first time.

EMERGENCY SERVICES

The emergency services were also on display courtesy of a visit from the Buckie Lifeboat, “The William Blannin”, the Coastguard and Grampian Fire & Rescue Service. The RAF Search & Rescue helicopter returned in time from a rescue mission near Braemar to entertain the crowd with several low level fly-pasts. Unfortunately some low cloud prevented a planned fly-past by a 1940’s De Haviland Tiger Moth by-plane from Shemptson Flying Club near Elgin.

OTHER EVENTS

The winner of the £50 prize for the lucky programme was Mrs Margaret Mitchell from Mosstodloch. Other events included the ever-popular ferret racing, kiddies rides, bouncy castles, target football, face painting and other kids games. There were also heritage displays by local groups including the Banffshire Maritime and Heritage Association who launched their new publication “Along the Coast - Burghead to Portknockie” written Stanley Bruce. There was also a range of other stalls such as Moray Council Libraries Service with kids storytelling.


PORTGORDON HARBOUR REGENERATION

Of course one of the reasons for the event is to support the planned regeneration of the Harbour and the surrounding area. PCHG continue to work tirelessly in their pursuit
of funding for the £1.5M marina project, the gala being the focus point of their fundraising activities.

Portgordon Community Harbour Group hope to make the harbour area the focal point for the village once again. The gala day proved that this is possible and the event was enjoyed by all.

SUPPORTERS

Portgordon Community Harbour Group would wish to say a big thankyou to all our performers, exhibitors, sponsors and supporters, the names of which are on their website www.portgordonharbour.org. We also wish to thank all the helpers whose contributions have made the day possible and to the public for attending in large numbers.


Derek Murray
Vice Chairman
Portgordon Community Harbour Group.


END

PRESS RELEASE 1st JULY 2010

PORTGORDON HARBOUR CHARITY RAFT RACE & GALA DAY - SUNDAY 25th JULY 2010


Portgordon Community Harbour Group are busy organising their 7th annual Raft Race and Gala Day at the Harbour, which this year takes place on Sunday 25th July from 12 noon to 5.00pm. The main purpose of the event is to raise awareness of the Group’s proposed regeneration of the harbour and surrounding area. However the event also involves a number of local groups and charities, many raising money for their own particular needs.

It has been decided that this years raft race will be a charity event and entrants will be encouraged to raise sponsorship money for their own particular charity. In an effort to boost entries and donate as much money as possible to good causes, Portgordon Community Harbour Group are putting up a prize fund for the winning raft of £100.00 made payable to the winners choice of registered charity. Group Vice Chairman, Derek Murray said that “The Raft Race has always been the main event in the Gala programme and attracts huge crowds. However the number of entrants have varied over the years and we are keen to hear from as many as possible local businesses, employers, groups or individuals who would wish to enter a raft, raise some money for charity, get some publicity and above all, have some fun!”

Details of entry fees, rules and regulations can be obtained by contacting Bob Thomson on 01542 834276 or Derek Murray on 01542 836248 or by going on to the Groups website www.portgordonharbour.org.

As well as the Raft Race the event also includes a display of classic cars, motorcycles and bicycles, yachts, kids fancy dress parade, Skip to the Beat and Highland Dancing demonstrations, music from Strathisla Pipe Band, Strathspey Fiddlers and others, a dog agility display, refreshment tent, a barbeque, children’s games, bouncy castles, various stalls, a car boot sale, visits from the Buckie Lifeboat, the Coastguard and much, much, more. The gala will be attended by Wave Radio, Dr Grays Hospital Radio, who will compere the proceedings. The event has become well established and further details of this years gala, and photographs of previous successful events can been seen on our website www.portgordonharbour.org

The organisers of the event are also keen to hear from anyone who may be interested in getting involved and helping with this year gala. Harbour Group Chairman, Ron Billing commented that “the Gala Day, like many local fundraising events in the area, requires a great deal of planning, organisation and running on the day and it’s success and future continuation depends solely on the continued support of volunteers in the local community.” “Anyone interested in getting involved are more than welcome to come along to one of the Groups Gala Meetings, the next one being at 7.00pm on Monday 12th July in the Lampie Hoose in Portgordon Square.



ENDS

PRESS RELEASE 12th APRIL 2010

PRESS RELEASE 12th APRIL 2010


Portgordon Community Harbour Group are pleased to announce a major step forward on their way to achieving the dream of redeveloping Portgordon Harbour, a major £1.5million marina project designed to revitalise the harbour area for the benefit of the Community. Late last year the Group were delighted to receive news from the OSCR (Office of the Scottish Charities Regulator) that they had finally been successful in achieving Charitable Status and are now a Registered Scottish Charity (SC 040805).

The Harbour Group’s Vice Chairman, Derek Murray, explained what this meant for the Group, “Since the Group were first formed back in 2003 a huge amount of work has been going on behind the scenes by way of detailed feasibility studies, business planning, designing and costing of the proposed regeneration works. However, the Group always recognised that any bids for funding would firstly require the support of the current harbour owners, the Crown Estate, and secondly, would benefit hugely by having charitable status. In 2008 the Crown Estate confirmed their full support for the project and achieving charitable status in late 2009 has given the Group the confidence it needed to press ahead with its bids for grant funding”.

The Group also received a further boost in December when the Lord-Lieutenant of Banffshire, Mrs Clare Russell, kindly agreed to become Patron of the Portgordon Community Harbour Group. In a letter of support, Mrs Russell stated:

“I am writing to express my enthusiasm and support for the Portgordon Community Harbour Group project. The marina and proposed clubhouse, with heritage area, workshop, meeting and training facilities, will be a most valuable asset to Portgordon and, equally as importantly, to the wider community. Especially, and commendably, it aims to involve the younger generation in the relevant education and training”.

“This development will complement other local efforts to preserve and promote the historic, cultural and natural resources of the area. I believe it will provide multiple benefits to Portgordon and the surrounding area, including strengthened tourism, increased economic prosperity and stronger promotion of the Banffshire coast’s maritime heritage resources”.

“I would strongly support the granting of funds to this significant regeneration project”.

PCHG Chairman, Ron Billing, said, “The Group were absolutely delighted to have received the support of the Lord-Lieutenant”. He added that “Mrs Russell’s appointment as Patron lifted the spirits of Group members after many years of hard work by the Committee to get the Group into a position where it could now confidently bid for the major funding needed”.

PCHG have prepared and submitted detailed applications to funding organisations in recent months and despite being unsuccessful with some initial bids the Group have been encouraged by the positive feedback received from potential funders. Derek Murray said that “unfortunately, we have recently been advised that bids to the Scottish Government 3rd Sector Enterprise Fund and to the Crown’s Marine Communities Fund have been unsuccessful. However funders have been impressed by our plans for the harbour and the quality of the bids and this has given us the encouragement to press ahead with further applications. A detailed funding plan has been prepared covering multiple projects within the overall regeneration plan.” Mr Murray acknowledged that “securing funding is challenging, particularly with the current economic climate and added that most grant awarding bodies are in a position to only part fund a project of this scale. Many funding organisations also wish to see match funding in place before they are prepared to award a grant. The key will be securing the first grant and hopefully then, funding will follow”. However, despite some initial setbacks PCHG remain confident that funding will eventually be secured. Mr Murray also added that “further public consultation would be required within the village before any major decisions were made concerning the Harbour. This is very much a community project and the future intention is that the harbour is owned and operated by the community, for the community”.

The Harbour Group are also pressing ahead with plans for this years annual Raft Race and Gala Day, the Groups 7th event, which takes place on Sunday 25th July. The organisers of the event are always keen to hear from any other local group or individuals who may be interested in getting involved with this year gala. Mr Billing commented that “the Gala Day, like many local fundraising events in the area, requires a great deal of planning, organisation and running on the day and its success and future continuation depends solely on the continued support of volunteers in the local community.” Anyone interested in getting involved are more than welcome to come along to any of the Groups Gala Meetings, the next one being at 7.30pm on Monday 26th April in the Lampie Hoose in Portgordon Square.

Portgordon Community Harbour Group also advise that their AGM is scheduled to take place on Wednesday 21st April at 7.30pm in the Village Hall, Portgordon. Anyone with an interest in the regeneration project and wishing to hear an update on the Groups activities are welcome to attend.

Further details on planned meetings, the regeneration project, the gala and many other items of interest can be found on the Groups website www.portgordonharbour.org The Group can also be contacted by email through a link on the website.


ENDS





Derek Murray,
Vice Chairman,
Portgordon Community Harbour Group Ltd.
Tel 01542 836248 or 07967 748905.

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Portgordon Community Harbour Group Ltd - registered Scottish Charity No: SC040805