No donation to a cave/mine rescue organisation this year? 😞
I did ask, over a month ago. I'm afraid nobody put forward any recommendations :(
I do appreciate that one or two people might object on the basis that it is a mine that has been supported before. But given the likelihood of much reduced calendar sales if nothing was suggested as a beneficiary, and then splitting this in two further reduces any good that the cash can do. And we do run the calendar firmly as a fund raiser. It's never been a case of if there's anything left in the pot it would go to x, y or z; it's always a fully accountable project intended to raise as much as it can for the cause(s) suggested.
This year nobody suggested anything.
Vanoord has talked this through with the controlling group, and it seems worth doing. There can't be many folk on here and other sites who haven't visited Cwmorthin or who don't intend to. And if enough calendars sell (I'd like to aim for the 100 we sold the year before last and the year before that - last year was down a bit), then it'll go a long way to helping putting something in that might last 50 years or more.
Vanoord's being a bit modest in his post. He's basically offering to take the calendar proceeds and source steel through his business at cost (i.e. more steel) and deliver it all welded up. Which is rather good of him.
There obviously is the proviso about permission; but in the unlikely event of it not being possible the money can sit in the account until it can be used for a different nominated cause(s) - but we'd cross that bridge later if we come to it.
For sure, next year it would be nice to support something completely different. But when the post goes up saying "hey, who shall we give half a grand to" a few ideas would help!
I know people have strong feelings about cave rescue organisations* and to redress the balance
we will be getting another batch of Underground Reflections printed before the end of the year will
all proceeds to a CRO (to be decided).
* CROs supported to date: North Wales, Derbyshire, COMRU
my orders are to sit here and watch the world go by