RCTA donate to waterway charities

RCTA donate to waterway charities

£500 each to Waterways Chaplains and Forces Vets Afloat

Since the start of Covid19 the Roving Canal Traders Association (RCTA) along with many other charities, non-profit making groups, business's & traders that make up our canal network have had a tough time. This year however, things returned to almost normal & our Floating Markets started to take off once again. This meant that we have been in a position this year to resume our annual charity donations as voted for by our members.

This year our members voted for the Waterways Chaplaincy charity & the Forces Vets Afloat Project with a donation of £500 to each.

The Waterways Chaplains work alongside Canal & River Trust to make sure boaters who have fallen in hard times or need some sort of support are not missed or lost in the system, they work with food banks around the country & make sure that essential meal, bag of coal or fuel gets to those who might otherwise go without, they maintain contact & support in so many ways. Our traders often come into contact with some of the Waterways Chaplains who are very supportive of our events so it was suggested that our donation was presented to the charity via Waterways Chaplains Malcolm & Stephanie who live beside the Shropshire Union Canal in Market Drayton & are very well known within the boating community. Mark Chester Senior Chaplain said “This donation of £500 will make a real difference in the lives of some of the boaters we encounter.”

Sue Meades presents cheque to Waterways Chaplains

The Forces Vets Afloat Project are close to finishing one of their donated boats nb Daisy ready for a Forces Veteran to make her their home. The founder of this project Andy Flint said "what a lovely email to wake up to" when we informed him of the donation. We hope it helps them with ongoing projects.

We also make a smaller annual donation to CRT if possible, as without their support Floating Markets & other waterways events would not take place.

RCTA is open to all licensed Roving Traders & we welcome new members via our website www.rcta.org.uk. We strive to support Roving Traders and open up as many trading opportunities as possible. We are run solely by volunteers & are always looking for new volunteers to help with moving the Association forward.