Charity quiz at Gosport café raises over £2,000 for local rescue service
A charity quiz hosted by local business owner, Gary Parker at Bayside Cabin in Stokes Bay, Gosport has raised over £2,000 for Gosport And Fareham Inshore Rescue Service (GAFIRS). This is wonderful news for the charity as they lost vital funds when their popular New Year’s Day Swim was cancelled. The event raises thousands for GAFIRS every year, so they were really disappointed when severe weather prevented it from taking place.
“Our rescue service is run entirely by volunteers, and we rely on donations from the New Year’s Day Swim, so the charity quiz has really helped us this year”, said Owen Sargant, Finance Director for GAFIRS.
“All money raised will go towards saving lives in the Solent and Portsmouth Harbour and this is an excellent example of the local community coming together to help our charity. We are really grateful to Gary Parker and Bayside Cabin for supporting us, and to everyone who came along.”
Gary has hosted charity quizzes for many years and really wanted to help GAFIRS after the swim was cancelled, so he organised the quiz with café Manager, Stephanie Engelmeier and added a raffle and auction to boost donations.
Gary said, “I want to thank everyone who supported the quiz by taking part, donating raffle prizes and buying tickets, and donating for the auction and bidding. Everyone had a great time, and I’m really pleased with the amount we raised for GAFIRS.”
Over 100 people joined in the fun and 25 teams took part, including two teams from GAFIRS who were on standby in case of emergency. Fortunately, there were no incidents so they could enjoy the evening.
Adrian Chalk, owner of Bayside Cabin, said “Being located next to the beach at Stokes Bay, we see firsthand the incredible work GAFIRS volunteers do in the Solent. We are delighted to support this vital local charity and help raise awareness of their lifesaving efforts. GAFIRS is our nominated charity for 2025, and we’re excited to host more fun events throughout the year to support their incredible efforts”.
Tickets for the quiz included a delicious curry and Bayside Cabin donated £5 per person. The raffle featured generously donated prizes from the café and its suppliers, including Gosport companies The Fruit Basket and Powder Monkey Brewing Company, who also donated a prize for the winning team.
The auction was a huge success too – a tour for 10 people on the Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier raised almost £700 and a jacket donated by GAFIRS raised a further £50.
If you wish to donate to GAFIRS, visit their fundraising page justgiving.com/gafirs
Gary Parker hosts a weekly pub quiz at the Sir Joseph Paxton in Park Gate and his charity quizzes have raised over £20,000 for local charities, including Cash for Kids, Abby’s Heroes, George’s Rockstars, and the Kirsty Louise Streek Foundation. You can contact him at Gary Parker Digital Marketing & Media or email [email protected]