Falklands veterans will be able to sleep easy – thanks to readers of The News.
The paper is handing over a cheque for almost £1,300, which will pay for all the bedding at a new refuge on the South Atlantic islands.
The money was raised after The News pledged to donate 10 per cent of the cover price of all copies sold of Falkla
nds 25 – a magazine to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the conflict.
The cash boost will pay for all the bedding in the centre, which is to be built so veterans and their families can stay on the islands, remember fallen comrades and face their demons from the war.
The donation comes as work to start erecting the wooden centre is less than two months away, following a six-year struggle with planning and fund-raising.
Derek 'Smokey' Cole, chief executive of the Falklands Veterans Foundation, who served in HMS Intrepid during the 1982 conflict, was overjoyed with the donation.
'I'm over the moon, it's quite a shock. I'd forgotten about the money and it's great it's coming our way,' he said. 'We are always pleased to get donations and we've been really well supported by The News – we are very grateful.
'The money will go towards helping furnish the property because we've got enough money to build it, but nothing for soft furnishings.
'It should be enough to cover all the bedding, duvets and pillows we need.'
The News is donating £1,293.40 towards the centre, which will have three twin bedrooms, a sitting room, a kitchen and dining room area and a separate flat for an on-site caretaker/ manager.
The timber building has been ordered from a company in Scotland and building work is due to start on April 28.
It is hoped to be completed by the end of August, when the one-storey building will officially open.
Building the centre is costing the foundation £310,000, raised through fund-raising, grants and donations.
It will then cost a further £30,000 for soft furnishings and an estimated £30,000 a year to run the centre from fund-raising, grants and donations.
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