Festival held by Hayling Island dad in memory of his daughter a “raving success”
Festival of Fun took place at The Lifeboat Inn, Hayling Island, on 25th August. Organised by Mark Fordham, the event celebrated his daughter May’s life, with over £2,500 raised on the day for two charities.
Live music, morris dancing and a dog walk were among the entertainment and activities laid on for last weekend’s Festival of Fun, held in memory of Mark’s daughter May whom he lost in 2021.
Mark said: “It was a truly magnificent day and went unbelievably well. I couldn’t believe the fantastic turnout, and how many people gave their services and time for free and made generous donations. It was such a lovely atmosphere and everyone did a stormer.
“May was my beautiful ray of sunshine and we’ve honoured her in the best way we could.”
Mark has been raising funds to name a guide dog puppy after May, and the day kicked off with a group dog walk from Funland to the pub. Guide dog owners, guide dog puppies in training with their volunteer puppy raisers, and local dog walkers all joined the walk.
“May loved dogs which is why I chose to raise funds for Guide Dogs”, explained Mark. “Talking with people on the walk was great – it gave me a much better understanding of the special bond guide dog owners share with their dog, and the journey a puppy goes through to become a guide dog.”
Music and morris dancing at the pub followed with local bands including DiElle Trio, The Igloo Band and Jane & the Jam Factory, before party band The Review headlined the event.
Mark added: “It was incredible how generous people were. We collected £576.76 in cash on the day, plus an amazing individual donation of £2,000.
“A special thank you to landlady Tracey too who was wonderful. She let us host the event at short notice, and never complained or questioned anything.”
From these funds, £1,000 will be given to Guide Dogs, with the rest going to the Alzheimer's Society in memory of Mark’s friend Gilo.
Thanks to the money raised from the Festival of Fun and another large donation of £50,000, Mark has now raised enough to name a puppy after May, supporting the lifetime cost of raising, training and caring for a guide dog. Of this donation, Mark said: “I know who you are, and you know who you are. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
Shona Lawson, Community Fundraising Relationship Manager at Guide Dogs, added: “We’re incredibly grateful to Mark for raising funds to name a puppy. Support such as this makes a huge difference and allows us to continue funding our life-changing services for people living with sight loss.”
Donations can also still be made on Mark’s Just Giving page.