Once again this year a Funfair was arranged for Children and Young Adults with Special needs and their siblings and parents/carers
Invites are sent to groups and schools throughout Nottinghamshire
The participation list gets bigger and bigger each year and Nottinghamshire Freemasons are keen to record their thanks to Michael McKean and his family of McKeans Funfairs who operate the rides free of charge to the Children
The fair is called the Peter Barratt Special Needs fair after one of the co founders (a Notts Freemason who died previously)
The fair is for children and young adults with Special Needs and their immediate families and aims to give them an experience they would not normally get and allows the families as a whole to experience some fun time together
Vouchers were also provided for the families entitling them to free food, drinks and ice creams !
It is organised and manned by Edwalton and St Giles Lodges and is funded by the Provincial Grand Lodge of Nottinghamshire and in fact the Provincial Grand Master Philip Marshall and his wife Ann were in attendance to see what an incredible time the children were having
The main organisers this year were Gordon Cowieson, Stuart Painter and Steve Walsh
Gordon said "Although its a lot of hard work to organise everything the smiling faces and squeals of delight from the children make it worth the many weeks work
This year the fair and facilities were provided free of charge to the families of 290 children and young adults with Special Needs along with 330 carers/parents and siblings
Teddy Bears were also provided free of charge to each child by Teddies for Loving Care, a Masonic Charity TLC is a national organisation but is also represented locally
TLC also operated a stall at the Fair and the Bears proved very popular
The fair has been run consistently since 2010 except during the Covid pandemic
Testimonials have regularly been received from families who attend and one of the latest from this years event said
"Can i just say how very enjoyable the fair was the other day Myself and my two young people really enjoyed it and would like to say a heartfelt thank you to all involved
It was lovely to spend time at the fair without worrying about our young people and how others react to them"
Please find attached a picture drawn by one of mine as a thank you
More images from the day are below
If you are a star in one or more of these images and would like your own copy please drop me an email at webmaster@nottinghamshiremasons.co.uk and I'll supply you a copy
The Funfair is just another example of the fine work which Freemasonry does in the community, If you would like to get involved with such worthwhile causes please visit us below
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