A Hampshire-based charity which helps the emergency services hunt for missing vulnerable people has benefitted to the tune of £750, the proceeds of the Portsmouth Philharmonic Orchestra's performance at a concert in Lee-on-the-Solent in June.
With soprano Jennifer Parker-Lummis supporting the orchestra, around 100 people attended the event at St Faith’s Church organised by Montserrat Events.
Orchestra chair Di Lloyd was given a guided tour of Hampshire Search & Rescue at its Meon Valley HQ by Chairman Phil Harvey to see exactly how the money will be put to good use.
She also presented the cheque to Phil and Trevor Vidler, vice-chairman. HANTSAR is on call 24/7 to spring into action when there is a report of a missing vulnerable person in the county.
Di said: “We were introduced to the charity through a family connection with one of the orchestra members and it struck us as the perfect cause to support at our Lee concert, given it is a Hampshire-wide organisation.
“It was fascinating to see the work they do and the extensive amount of equipment they need to maintain. The money raised is clearly going to be put to excellent use.”
Trevor, who is also one of HANTSAR’s search managers, added: “We are not funded by the government, so this sort of fundraising is a double positive for us in many ways. The funding goes a long way towards what we do and we will identify a specific project for that money.
“Everyone has heard of mountain rescue but very few people have heard of lowland rescue which is where we come in. Therefore that awareness and publicity, either on the night [of the concert] or through social media, is a great asset for us.”
A photo gallery from the concert is available here.
The Portsmouth Philharmonic was formed in 2009 by a group of amateur musicians in the city and has raised more than £23,000 for local charities since then. With more than 30 members, it plays at least three charity concerts a year. It is supported by Portsmouth firm Bishops Printers.
Picture Captions
Top of story: Di Lloyd (centre) presents the cheque to Trevor Vidler (right) and Phil Harvey (left).
Phil Harvey shows Di Lloyd some of HANTSAR's equipment
More details about HANTSAR can be found here: https://hantsar.org/