A north-east village’s annual gala has been rescued by the public’s community spirit.
Gardenstown Gala has been run for years by the harbour trustees, but following last year’s event, they decided it was time to pass it on.
After relinquishing the organisation of the festival, they offered the chance for community groups to take it on and two organisations have now stepped forward.
Volunteers from the Gardenstown Community Hub and the Gardenstown Village Action Committee have taken over at the helm for the 2019 gala.
One of those is Lorna Petrie from the hub.
She said: “The harbour trustees have been doing it for quite a number of years and they wanted to hand it on.
“They wanted a community group to take it on, but if no one did, then they would stop holding it which would be a shame.
“Originally, the harbour trustees owned the Little Schoolie as they were the only association in the community at the time who could take it on board.
“So they put that out to the community in 2017 and everyone wanted to keep the gala, so it went to a community vote.
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“We joined forces with another group and have now been running the schoolie for the last year and a half.
“That’s what we’re here for – if someone or a group needs something in the community, then we will be there to help.”
“So, when the chance to run the gala came up, it was an unmissable opportunity to try something new.”
The event, which will be held on August 3 will include food stalls, a bouncy castle, a visit from the RNLI, games and Turriff Pipe Band.
Miss Petrie said she was delighted at the news and impressed by the community spirit.
She said: “We’re pulling it together now – it’s been a team effort.
“Between us, we want to keep it going and with next year being the 300 years of Gardenstown, we might change it up a bit.
“This year, we are keeping it similar with the kids games and stalls, but we’ll have to start planning for next year’s event as soon as this one is over.”
