Pub saves the day for charity
WHEN a Birkenhead pub was forced to close, a charity night aimed at helping bring children from Belarus to Britain looked doomed.The event, organised by the Wirral branch of the Royal Antediluvian Order of Buffaloes (RAOB) had been due to take place at the Old Colonial Pub in Birkenhead last Wednesday but a problem with brewery Cains meant the pub had to close and the charity night cancelled.
But thanks to Maxine Sutton, owner of the Great Float Hotel in Wheatland Lane, Wallasey, the night was able to go ahead - and £600 raised in the process.
RAOB is a world-wide charitable gentleman's organisation which raises money for a number of charities and regularly organises, through its Wirral branch in the William Carmody Lodge, Liscard, for children from Belarus to stay with a Wirral family for six weeks.
The "once in a lifetime" trips are meant to be beneficial for the childrens' health as they all come from areas of high radiation.
With each trip costing in the region of £5,000, fundraising nights are vital. The next trip, planned for February, could therefore have been in danger if last week's event had not gone ahead.
Phil Mawdesley, secretary of William Carmody Lodge, said: "Luckily, we got bailed out. We were due to hold the night at the Old Colonial but they had a problem with their brewery, so pulled out on Wednesday.
"That made us desperate as our event was meant to be on Friday. Thankfully, Maxine turned round and said we could have it in her pub."
With help from Radio City 96.7 and Wirral's Buzz 97.1, the rearranged evening was quickly organised for Saturday, with raffles and performances from Liverpool's Starlight Roadshow helping to bring in the cash.
Phil added: "We only had a short time to get things organised but everything came together nicely, thanks to Maxine and the customers from both pubs who turned up."