Bid for this painting but be quick and quiet about it
A superb painting of HMS Campbeltown by Kintyre artist Billy McTaggart has been donated to Shopper-Aide to help raise funds for the charity.
The work of art can be seen on display in the window of the charity’s premises at 47 Longrow, Campbeltown.
Susan Paterson, a director with Shopper-Aide, said: ‘We are extremely grateful for this opportunity to help raise funds. Billy is very talented and a great supporter of our work.’
She added: ‘We have decided to have a silent auction for this painting and if you are interested please send/hand in your bid in a sealed envelope to the office by Saturday November 30. You can also send them to: SilentAuction@shopper-aide.org.uk (a sealed mailbox).
‘On Sunday December 1 all bids will be opened with the highest amount being the winner of this amazing painting.’
The ship depicted, HMS Campbeltown (F86) – ship’s motto: Victoria fortes sequitur, meaning victory through strength – was a Batch 3 Type 22 frigate of the British Royal Navy. She was built by Cammell Laird Shipbuilders Ltd in Birkenhead.
In early 2004 the vessel was deployed as part of NATO Standing Naval Force Atlantic. Campbeltown’s last deployment was a seven-month tour from 2007 to 2008 in the Persian Gulf where she operated in support of Operation Calash and Operation Telic. HMS Campbeltown entered refit in September 2008.
The ship’s bell from the first HMS Campbeltown, a Second World War Town-Class Destroyer famous for her role in the St Nazaire Raid was loaned from Campbelltown, Pennsylvania, to the most recent HMS Campbeltown for the duration of her service.
The Royal Navy announced in March 2011 that Campbeltown would be decommissioned in 2011. She paid a final visit to her namesake town of Campbeltown, Argyll, in March that year where a series of ceremonies, including a town centre parade by the ship’s crew, took place to commemorate the end of the ship’s active service.
The ship’s bell has now been returned to Campbelltown, Pennsylvania. The bell made specifically for the latest HMS Campbeltown was given to the Wee Toon, to be displayed in the museum until a future HMS Campbeltown is commissioned.