|
Feedback from our recent
events
April
2008
Gloucestershire
and Warwickshire Railway Weekend with Black Prince
and David Shepherd
It finally proved third
time lucky having postponed due to flooding and
then David's illness last year. A superb selection
of David's p[paintings and sketches (and the man
himself signing everything hat moved), could be
found on display at Winchcombe Station during
the weekend. The highlight for the 150 people
who managed to secure tickets for the "Wildlife
and Steam on Tour" trip, was David's enlightening
and amusing hour-long talk in the Flag & Whistle
on the Saturday evening - a real treat.
We raised a record income
of £17,000 from this event. Our very sincere
and heartfelt thanks go to the fabulous teams
of volunteers from both charities; Gary and Val
Owen, Ed and Andy, David Rowley, Ian Crowder,
Jeff and Ken, Julian, Barbs, Nilla and countless
others. Website www.gwsr.com
STEAM AND WILDLIFE TOURS
WITH DAVID SHEPHERD
The
golden age of steam came to an end on the Southern
Regions of British Railways 40 years ago. To celebrate
this era, David has given a series of talks and
displayed some of his ORIGINAL STEAM PAINTINGS
creating a variouis special exhibitions. A variety
of prints and other merchandise were sold.In addition
to this there was an opportunity to ride on the
steam engines throughout the weekend.
Weekend - Bank Holiday
Sunday 26th and Monday 27th August - The Poppy
Line, North Norfolk Railway, SHERRINGHAM, Norfolk
David
entertained over 200 people on Sunday evening
at Sherringham Station "My memories of Those
Last Days of Steam when he spoke of his joint
passions for steam engines and wildlife conservation.
Many amusing anecdotes of his "crazy"
life were shared . This was followed by a trip
on Black Prince, David's steam engine, and a wine
reception. It was a weekend which allowed David
to enjoy his hobby surrounded by steam engines
as well as providing the visitors a chance to
meet the great man and share their passion for
steam. It was truly a weekend in which the giant
steam train helped raise funds for the magnificent
and rare species of mammals -a total of nearly
£16,000 was raised which was an astounding
effort by everyone
concerned. Our particular thanks go to Julian
and Amanda Birley and their children Tom and James,
Chrissie Ramont and Bryan Toovey, Colin Borg ,
Hugh Harkett, Tony Streeter, Patrick Ridley-Martin
and tocountless others including the engine drivers
from the Poppy Line. We simply could not have
done this without them particularly since we were
very short of volunteers. Our sincere thanks go
to our two fabulous volunteers, Barbara Hayers
and Nilla D'Andrea. It was indeed a very very
special weekend www.nnrailway.co.uk
or call 01263 820 800 (10am till 4pm)
Weekend of 14th and
15th July - BlueBell Line, Sheffield Park, EAST
SUSSEX
It
was a gloriously hot weekend and the public were
a wonderful support. We raised just over £9,000
in total with Sunday being the busiest day. David's
originals were displayed in the Birch Grove Suite
and together with the vast choice of pictures
we were able to produce a great exhibition over
the two days. The sound of the steam engines coming
in and out of the station were a constant reminder
of " the good old days" and it was sheer
delight to see so many families enjoying themselves.
It is thanks to Roy Watts and Roger Cruise of
the Bluebell Line that this event was so successful.
They worked tirelessly both before and during
the event. Our grateful thanks to our volunteers
Jessica Cater and John Bloom. For further details
about the Bluebell line www.bluebell-railway.co.uk
Sunday 19 August - Day
of Sales with Talks with David at The Priory Farm,
Nutfield, REDHILL, Surrey
Despite
the day starting with a very heavy downpour, members
of the public continued to flock to our exhibition
throughout the day. David gave two talks both
of which proved to be entertaining and informative.
We are extremely grateful to John and Wendy Shinner,
the owners of Priory Farm, who have owned the
premises for 50 years. They wanted to celebrate
their achievements by raising funds for the Foundation.
Their marketing, by Tracy, was exceptional and
their staff were extremely supportive in every
way. It is thanks to them and of course to our
volunteers - Barbara Hayers, Jessica Cater, Babs
Emery, John Bloom and John Harris that we were
able to sell an astounding £12,500 worth
of goods. David worked tirelessly thoroughout
the day until John and Wendy whisked him away
for lunch and tea. For further details about the
Priory Farm which provides wonderful facilities
for a day out with the family www.prioryfarm.co.uk
Saturday
4 August 2007 Borde Hill Garden Summer Magic Proms
- This was a spectacular night at the Proms and
was organised by Motoring and Leisure Association
(CSMA). The Foundation was able to raise funds
through selling to the 4,000 strong audience.
Over £5,300 was raised in total from sales
and the raffle. The winners were: Top Prize -
Return ferry journey to either Guernsey, Jersey
or St Malo - donated by CONDOR FERRIES won by
Mr McDonnell; 2nd Prize - Two Tickets for Disney's
THE LION KING - - won by Don Beam; 3rd Prize -
Framed Limited Edition by David Shepherd - A Moon
Bear called Jasper - won by N S Oyns
David
kindly donated an original elephant oil to his
dear friend Dame Vera Lyn ,still active at 90
years old, who continues to raise funds for her
own charity for terminally ill children, in Sussex.
From
6.30pm onwards we were entertained by The Hangleton
Band whilst everyone tucked into their picnics
and then at 8pm conductor, Frank Renton ( presenter
of BBC Radio 2's Listen to the Band programme
), introduced his own creation, THE BRITISH CONCERT
ORCHESTRA. As they began to play we saw the arrival
overhead of the wonderful GRACE SPITFIRE. Pilot,
Carolyn Grace, delivered a breathtaking display
of superb flying set to stirring music. Tenor,
Richard Coxon and leading Soprano, Deborah Myers
sang with gusto with the evening reaching its
climax with rousing Proms favourites played out
to the backdrop of a fantastic firework display.
Our very sincere and grateful
thanks are extended to David Arnold and Ron McGill
who both worked tirelessly to allow us to maximise
our fundraising efforts. As usual our fabulous
volunteers worked tirelessly and special thanks
go to Pam Keeble, Julian and Jen Abel, Babs Emery,
Rob Singer, Patience and Ian Smith and Joan Boggis.
Birthday
celebration success
David's
75th birthday party at The Dorchester raises £140,000
for wildlife. Celebrities and friends joined David
and his family for a wonderful evening celebrating
David's birthday and raising funds for DSWF projects
in Africa and Asia.
For
more information, click
here ..

April
Weekend with David Shepherd at Shillingford Bridge
Hotel, Nr Wallingford, Oxfordshire with the Forestdale
Hotel Group
About
40 guests spent a weekend with David during which
time they were able to meet and talk with him
and hear more about the Foundation and David's
fascinating life and involvement in the Foundation.
The Forestdale Hotel Group hosted the event and
provided excellent food and accommodation for
a very reasonable price. Everyone enjoyed themselves
and we were able to gain 12 new members as well
as raising just over £9,000 in sales. Our
volunteers, Barbara, Julian, Babs, Maggie and
Mike were able to enjoy spending quality time
time with the clients and share their expertise.
Our very sincere thanks to them as well as to
our hosts, Shillingford Bridge Hotel, who made
everone feel so welcome.

Bedworth
Civic Hall on 22 March with the Nuneaton Railway
Circle
Nuneaton Railway Circle
celebrated its 21st birthday in style when David
was invited to speak during the evening. About
350 guests attended the evening as part of the
celebrations. Committee members, Steve Nikols,
Russ Watkins, Sharon Chadaway, Andy Stubbs and
Bob Blower are to be congratulated on organising
such a successful event. It was a busy evening
with fans waiting patiently for David to sign
their purchases. Thirty one members joined the
Foundation and £6500 of goods were sold.
Our
sincere thanks go to the organisers as well as
to our own volunteers, Maggie + Mike, Babs, Malcolm
and Heather, Jeff and Ken and Julian
|