Castle boost to military charity
A RAFFLE held at Highclere
Castle has raised almost £9,000 for an Armed Forces charity.
It looked as though the raffle, which was organised by the Rally for Heroes organisation to raise money for the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association (SSAFA), would have to be cancelled due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
Rally for Heroes had been planning to raise funds for SSAFA – which provides lifelong support to serving men, women and veterans from the British Armed Forces and their families – by organising a rally across Europe.
On the last day of the rally, a raffle draw for the grand prize, an MG3 car, was due to take place.
However, the rally had to be postponed until 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Not wanting the charity to miss out, Lord Carnarvon, who is honorary vice president of SSAFA’s Hampshire branch, invited Rally for Heroes to hold the raffle at the castle instead. The raffle draw took place at the iconic venue – the home of the hit TV series Downton Abbey – last Wednesday and raised a massive £8,630.
Lord Carnarvon was made honorary vice president of SSAFA’s Hampshire branch in 2018 after it was discovered he was a life member of SSAFA Hampshire.
SSAFA and Highclere Castle have worked together since 2018 after a successful Battle Proms event.
Since 2010, Rally for Europe has taken more than 700 people and 360 vehicles more than 18,000 miles, managing to raise a phenomenal £600,000 for military charities in the process.