Huge amount of money raised for charity by the popular Southwick Revival weekend with 2025 dates confirmed

News of the bumper amount was greeted by loud applause in a cheque presentation evening following the huge success of the event held in the 80th Anniversary Year of D-Day in June 2024.

Martin Bazeley BEM, Chair of the Southwick Revival Committee thanked the individuals, groups and organisations who made this year a spectacular success.

Since it began, the Revival has raised a massive £324,000 with the committee distributing donations to military charities and local organisations. In 2023 the Revival raised £46,000 so 2024 smashed that amount by double figures.

The record fundraising figure is a tribute to the efforts of an enthusiastic committee of volunteers from the local area, generous sponsors from Hampshire-based businesses and supportive vintage re-enactment groups, assisted by military neighbours at DPSG Southwick Park, Southwick Estate, Fort Southwick and the National Museum of the Royal Navy.

The Revival’s headline sponsor, Lockheed Martin plc, a longstanding supporter had the privilege of presenting the donation cheques. The company’s representative, Ben Barron was delighted to handover the large cheques to each of the charities’ representatives.

Cheque donations were presented to SSAFA the military families’ charity received £20,000. The homeless charity for veterans, Alabare received £5,000 while more locally, Rowan’s Hospice received a £15,000 donation in addition to an interim donation earlier this year.

Other organisations to receive generous cheque donations included: Wickham Pantry, Royal Marines Voluntary Cadet Corps, Gosport, Denmead Scout Group, CPPTD (vintage bus charity), the Military Wives Choir, Young Farmers’ Club, the SNUG (local Ukraine support group) Models for Heroes, RAF, Army and Royal Navy Benevolent Trusts, Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, Spirit of Normandy Charity. Money was also donated to Southwick Park’s Families’ Day, the People’s Mosquito, Project Sarah and local organisations in Southwick including the D-Day Memorial Hall, Priory Club, Youth Group, St James’ church and the Toddlers Group.

At the evening presentation, key members of the Committee were presented with gifts in thanks for their dedicated voluntary service and who were now stepping down from their roles. Treasurer Trevor Ling and his wife Marilyn were presented with a special engraved glass bowl while an engraved tankard was presented to Mark Lawrence who has given tremendous support to the village over the past decade.

Martin Bazeley thanked the visiting public who threw themselves into the spirit of the event, dressing in vintage costume and enjoying the vintage motorcade rumbling through the village High St.

Many military vehicle displays had travelled directly from the beaches of Normandy having taken part in the international events across the Channel. The amphibious vintage DUKM vehicle was so keen to take part in the Revival that, having missed the Channel ferry, heroically launched into the English Channel in Normandy to ‘swim’ across to Portsmouth Harbour and then drive over the hill to Southwick village after an epic sea voyage home to Blighty!

At the presentation evening it was announced that the 2025 dates for the Southwick Revival will be held on 7 th and 8 th June 7 and 8 and themed: “D-Day to VE Day” marking the 80th Anniversary of the end of the war in Europe after the Allied Troops liberated Paris.

There will be a distinctly French flavour to the celebrations in Southwick. Tickets will go on sale in the Spring of 2025 on the Southwick Revival website: https://southwickrevival.co.uk

In the meantime, the winter series of related speaker presentations will continue in the D-Day Memorial Hall Southwick, the next speaker will be Alan Watson OBE on the subject of The Enigma Machine and the World of WWII Cryptography on Thursday, November 21. Find out more about all the Winter series of talks at https://southwickrevival.co.uk/southwickspeaks/