MUSIC and beer festivals held at a North Yorkshire farm this year raised £27,500 for the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS).
The annual CornShed festivals held in Hutton Rudby, near Yarm, have now raised more than £227,500 for good causes since the first festival took place in 1986.
Organiser, Judy Kitching, who was awarded an MBE last year for her services to charity, said: “We are so proud to present GNAAS with the bumper cheque.
“We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who supported us – our wonderful volunteers, sponsors and incredible donators who have all helped towards raising this fantastic amount of money for such an important and worthy cause.”
Mrs Kitching hosts the music festival that took place in June and the beer festival in September.
The CornShed sees bands playing rock, blues and folk music, and for the first time this year saw a dedicated acoustic tent at the music festival.
The third annual beer festival was organised in conjunction with Cleveland CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale) whose many volunteers ran the real ale, cider and perry bar.
Mrs Kitching, a former French teacher at Hustler School, in Middlesbrough, said: “We love to support northern bands and musicians and this year was no different.”
Among the acts performing were Last Anthem, Soul Street, Steal Strings, #TheProject and American Girl.
To mark its success, and to celebrate a decade of fundraising for GNAAS, a presentation evening was held at the farm this month. GNAAS presented Mrs Kitching with a model helicopter in honour of her team’s achievements in aid of the charity.
Mrs Kitching paid tribute to her loyal volunteers. She said: “In 28 years, the music festival has come a long way and has evolved into a packed two-day event with the add-on of a beer festival taking place in the last three years. I have a fantastic team that come together from all over the UK to turn the farm into a music venue and we could not do it without the help of so many.”
Mandy Drake, head of fundraising at GNAAS, said: “Judy’s enthusiasm is infectious. She puts an incredible amount of work into these events and she always gathers a huge amount of support. Since its humble beginnings, the festival is now firmly on the music calendar and attracts more than 1,000 people to its remote location. That’s a credit to Judy and her team of volunteers.
“Every penny of the funds raised will be spent on flying missions throughout our region, and will make a real difference in the life-saving work of our crews.”
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