Pirates in the Port, A sea shanty festival organised by a Cwmbran-based band raised £2,100 for charity.
Bois y Bryn invited 39 bands to sing in 11 venues across Newport from 31 May to 1 June for Pirates in the Port. Every performance was free to watch, but spectators donated money in buckets.
This evening, they invited representative from three charities to attend their free monthly session at the Parkway Hotel. During the interval, they presented a cheque for £700 to Stuart Leatherdale from the Newport South Wales Fundraising Branch of the RNLI, Gail Windley from the Wales Air Ambulance Charity , and Trudi Marsden from Severn Area Rescue Association.
I asked Peter Cox, from Bois y Bryn, how they felt about raising the money.
He said: “Well, considering we had actually no idea when we were counting the buckets up, when it came to it, we were absolutely over the moon.
“It meant more than anything, really, because we know what important work these guys do,
“The public were absolutely generous beyond, the venues were generous and if that’s what we can do in a weekend, so long may it continue. And if we can make more next year, great, absolutely fantastic.
“All you’ve got to do is speak to these guys [the band] about how much fun they had raising the money. The vibe in Newport was wonderful. Just seeing people smiling and even people saying ‘why are people dressed as pirates’ and then they walk in a bar, sit there, listen to the music and enjoy it. That’s what it’s all about. “