Wedmore Real Ale Festival (WRAF) celebrated another successful
year of ale drinking and fundraising, with the organisers pouring out
£18,000 in donations to local worthy causes. Some 19 organisations
were handed cheques at the annual Presentation Evening in the
function room of The Post & Wicket on 21 October 2023. The
cheques were presented to a room full of successful beneficiaries, Ale Festival
Committee members and volunteers, who gathered to celebrate a very successful
22nd festival, which took place in the village over the weekend of 15-17 September.
This year’s £18,000 of donations brings the overall total amount of money they
have raised for local worthy causes over the festival’s 22-year history to a whopping
£264,820.
‘As with all previous years, we’re delighted that this year’s festival was a great
success. We’re very proud to be able to give away £18,000 this year, considering the
significant increase in costs associated with putting on the festival’, said James Turbitt,
WRAF’s Chairperson.
James added: ‘It’s never easy deciding on where and how much to donate with
so many worthy causes in need of funds, but we try to spread what we have to give
across as many beneficiaries as we can. It is always a highlight for the committee to be
giving out the cheques and it makes all the hard work in putting on and running the
festival more than worthwhile. As always, none of this would not be possible without
the huge commitment from our committee, the team of volunteers, our sponsors and
everyone else who supports the festival in one way or another. So, they should also
take the credit for what we have all achieved again this year’.
The complete list of 2023 beneficiaries is:
Wedmore Girls U12 Football Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £300.00
IOW Football Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £500.00
Musgrove Park Hospital . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £500.00
Wedmore In Bloom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £500.00
Wedmore Tuesday Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £500.00
Raffle Donation to Brownies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £500.00
Women’s Football . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £700.00
Wedmore Playing Fields Management Committee . . . . £750.00
Wedmore Scout Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £750.00
Blackford Village Hall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £1,000.00
Wedmore Cricket Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £1,000.00
Wedmore Tennis Club . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £1,000.00
Weston Hospicecare . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £1,000.00
Weston Super Mare Samaritans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £1,000.00
Children’s Hospice Southwest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £1,500.00
Somewhere House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £1,500.00
Wedmore Men’s Shed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £1,500.00
Wedmore Village Farm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £1,500.00
Somerset Prostate Support Association . . . . . . . . . . . . £2,000.00
Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . £18,000.00