Rotary clubs are always thinking of new and interesting projects which can benefit the people in their local community, but sometimes it is those tried and tested activities which continue to have the biggest impact.
For almost three decades, Newbury Rotary Club has been working with The Bruce Trust to run their annual Barge Week, providing day trips and getaways for disabled, disadvantaged and elderly people in their community.
To date, the club’s initiative has provided over 200 day trips for 2,000 people, and the week remains a landmark date in the community calendar.
The Bruce Trust is a charity providing specially-designed, purpose-built, wide-beam canal boats offering the comfort and flexibility, allowing guests with a wide variety of special needs to enjoy a boating adventure.
‘Rebecca’, the vessel used for this year’s, includes wide-access ramps for boarding at the stern deck and an electro hydraulic lift down into the boat with the extra width of the boat providing excellent maneuverability for wheelchair users.
This year’s Barge Week included guests from the West Berkshire branches of the Motor Neurone Disease Association and Mencap, and as Eddie Webb, a member of the club and one of the organisers explains, it is always an enjoyable week: “Our passengers are a delight to have on board and they clearly have a good day out. We are grateful to our trained skippers and crew who help make the week possible.”
Published: Wednesday 13th September 2016
This week is the second Rotary Good News Week. Over the next five days, we’ll be celebrating five special stories from Rotary clubs and members from across Great Britain and Ireland.
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Read our other Good News Stories from this week below:
