ALMOST a year after launching their appeal, South Kintyre Sports Council are delighted to announce they will be proudly putting a new mini bus on the road in January 2008.
In July of this year the Sports Council received the bad news that their application for funding to the big lottery had been rejected.
Whilst fund raising continued and nearly £20,000 was raised this left the amount well short of its original target.
However, through some background work by the committee and help from staff at Argyll and Bute Council the Sports Council applied and were granted associate membership of the Authorities Buying Consortium (ABC). Fundraising continued and met the target of the ABC price allowing the committee to order a new 17-seater Ford Transit bus.
A spokesperson for the Sports Council said: ‘We are all absolutely thrilled to have the new mini bus on order. The efforts of the committee and the local community have been nothing short of amazing. Our member clubs have been pivotal in raising money for the new bus and the locals of Kintyre once again showed their amazing generosity. We can’t thank everyone enough.
‘In the meantime we are busy arranging for the delivery of the new bus.
‘However, we need to look to the future of the mini bus so we don’t find ourselves in this position again and we will be asking local businesses to take up the opportunity of sponsoring the mini bus and the Sports Council over the next three years. Details on this will be issued in the New Year.
‘The money raised by sponsorship will be part of a fund set up to generate enough to enable the replacement of the bus in the future. Charges for the bus will be set to cover running costs.’
The Sports Council would like to, once again, thank all the people in Kintyre who contributed so generously to the minibus fund.
It will definitely be a Happy New Year when it comes.
