HERE - Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution

Around the countryFUNDRAISINGVine day out in EssexThanks to the hard work and support of the RABI county committee volunteers andmany other supporters, fundraising and awareness events take place across thecountry throughout the year. The summer is a particularly busy and this is taste ofwhat has been happening over the past few months. For greater detail and moreinformation visit www.rabi.org.uk or contact your local regional officer (see page 10)Presentation at cocktail partyStable art in NorthantsMembers of the Essex committee and friendsbeing addressed by Alan Jordan in hisvineyard when they visited The Great Lodge,Great Bardfield. They also enjoyed aploughman’s supper in the 16th centuryGrade I listed Great Barn, which was built forAnne of Cleves.Ladies that lunch in SuffolkThere was a full house for the Suffolk ‘Ladiesthat lunch’event with 90people enjoyinga demonstrationof Thai cookerybefore eating adelicious Thaigreen curry,cooked by members of the RABI committee.There was also the opportunity to buy variouslocally produced crafts.Golf in NorfolkMembers of the NFU North Walsham team(from left) Andy Norman, Tim Moll, SteveSmith and Steve Hopper ready to tee off inthe annual Norfolk golf day at BawbroughGolf Club. A great day was had by all and,with 24 teams taking part, it raised morethan £2,000.Shooting clays in KentThe clay pigeon shoot organised byEdenbridge and Sevenoaks NFU was very wellattended with strong competition among the22 participating teams. Held at HendenManor, Ide Hill, thanks to Mr & MrsLovegrove, it was won by the Goddingtonteam with an excellent score and raised over£2,000 for RABI.There was a surprise event at the Norfolkcommittee’s annual fundraising cocktail partyon the Norfolk Showground. To mark 25 yearsas secretary to the committee, Sally Mitchell(pictured second from right with some of thecommittee) was presented with a speciallycommissioned and decorated RABI tea set.Herts hamper winnerHertfordshire RABI committee chairman NigelCollins (left) with Mark Robinson, winner of ahamper of local food raffled by the committeeat this year’s Herts show. With a hamper tobe won on each of the three days on thestand hosted by the NFU branches, over£1,000 was raised.Show charity at BlastonLeicestershire committee members EllieRichardson and Veronica Sutton ready topromote RABI and sell raffle tickets for arocking sheep at Blaston Show. RABI was thechosen charity for the show and theorganisers helped the fundraising by running‘guess the weights’, of a calf and two lambscompetitions.‘Art in the Box’, at Pastures Farm, Grendon,proved a great success. Sponsored by CarterJonas, it attracted 30 local artists and, withcommissions from the sale of pictures, raised£1,200 for RABI. Pictured are Debbie Skinner(right), organiser of the event, local artist LeeBurrows and RABI regional officer MillyWastie. (Debbie and Lee are also pictured onthe R.A.B.I. News cover).Summer parties inNottinghamshire...Hexgrave Hall, home of former Newark andNotts Show president Tony Strawson, was thevenue for a summer party attended by 300guests. They enjoyed a hog roast, music andan auction. Thanks to Tony and his partnerHelen, with support from the Newark andNotts Show Society, a wonderful eveningraised £7,400....and NorthantsThe Northants RABI Summer party atWakefield Estate, by kind permission of Sarahand Julian Richmond-Watson, attracted 150supporters. Guests were able to enjoy thebeautiful surroundings of the estate, whichboasts an exotic array of livestock, and weregiven a tour of the stud farm. An excellentevening raised some £1,500.www.rabi.org.uk12