Regatta raises £20,000 for Room to Reward charity

Room to Reward held its first Sail to Reward fundraising regatta in the Solent this month, with 12 teams, including Harbour Hotels, Homegrown Hotels and Starboard Hotels, on the water to learn the ropes of sailing and compete in a series of races.

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The event was organised by Portsmouth-based Prometheus Sailing whose crew guided the teams through sailing tutorials before the three races, while the Isle of Wight Distillery were headline sponsors, providing drinks for all and the coveted trophy to the winning team.

Starboard Hotels, who have been partners of Room to Reward for a number of years and whose chair, Paul Callingham, is an ambassador of the charity, took home first place, with Harbour Hotels and Guests in second and Meridien Modena – an official Ferrari dealership in Hampshire – in third.

A day on the water was followed by a three course dinner at Southampton Harbour Hotel & Spa, complete with a fundraising auction and an after-dinner speech from Gosport resident Dee Caffari, the first woman to sail single-handed and non-stop around the world.

The regatta is the largest event the charity has ever put on and the money raised will support Room to Reward’s mission to use donated unsold hotel rooms as a means to enable charities and community groups to give a short break to their inspirational volunteers.

‘It was a fantastic, unforgettable day for us,’ said Adam Terpening, the charity’s director. ‘We are hugely grateful to Simon Boulding and his fantastic team at Prometheus Sailing, Southampton Harbour Hotel & Spa and Isle of Wight Distillery for making it possible.

‘We are a small charity and of course funding is absolutely vital to what we do. The amazing amount of money raised will enable us to make a real difference to charities, community groups and the Hidden Heroes who do so much for them.

‘To everyone who climbed aboard a boat, sponsored the event, donated an auction prize, came to dinner, bought a raffle ticket and made the event such a success, your support means more than words can say. We are so grateful. Thank you so much.’