Frome Lions Haybale handovers £1400 for Headways

THE president of the Lions Club of Frome, Chris Bailey Green, presented a cheque for £1400 to Headways Somerset from funds raised by the 2012 Haybale Collection. 

Headway Somerset is a little known charitable organisation helping people across the county to live as independent a life as possible after a brain injury. It provides information, support and rehabilitation to those with brain injuries as well as much needed respite care for family and carers.

In receiving the cheque, Alison Mills, fundraising manager for Headways Somerset, explained that the money would be put to good use, helping with the running of Headways after local county funding cuts. She thanked the Lions for their generosity and in raising the funds with the Haybale collection.

Nigel Knowles is  one of the people who benefits from the help of Headways after suffering with Meningitis as a child. He receives cognitive therapy twice a week at a village hall in Henton, and lots of support so he can live in an annex next to his mum Pauline, who is also his carer.  Pauline said how the help Headways gives was fantastic and a real help to her and her family, and also how Nigel looks forward to the Headway sessions from which he is making steady progress.

The Haybale collection has been going annually for over 40 years.  Local farmers donate bales of hay, straw, silage or cash and cheques and the fodder collected is sold to another farmer at market value. Last year the amount of hay and straw collected was up surprisingly, considering the difficulties farmers faced with the wet weather affecting the harvest.

The Frome Lions Club would like to extend its grateful thanks to its friends in the farming community for helping to raise this large amount of money despite the present economic conditions and extremely wet weather last year. The Frome Lions would also like to thank Angela Yeoman for kindly hosting the presentation at Southfield House and also contributing by giving hay.

For more information about the Frome Lions Club, please visit the website at www.fromelions .org.uk.

Above: l-r, Angela Yeoman, Lion president Chris Bailey Green, Alison Mills, Nigel and Pauline Knowles, Lion Jim Dowling, organiser  of the haybale collection and Lion Richard Phillips