£4,600 raised at carol service

OVER 700 people braved the elements to show their support for serving Armed forces, at a special Carol service held on Saturday night (see page 8 for pictures).

Some travelled a considerable distance to attend the Carol Service in First Ballymena Presbyterian Church on a cold, snowy foggy night. This event was organised by the Ballymena Branch of Friends of The Royal Irish Regiment and gave local people a chance to their support for local troops serving Afghanistan, while raising over 4500.

After the service many people stayed for tea and queued in the hall to sign a book of condolence for Ranger Aaron McCormick.

A spokesperson for the Organising Committee said: "The main reason for this event was to show support for our brave men and women in the Armed Forces presently deployed in Afghanistan.

Our thoughts, prayers and best wishes go to all those that are so far away from their loved ones at this time of year. We hope you have a peaceful Christmas and New Year, and keep safe until the end of your tour.

A Committee spokesperson said: "The organising committee would like to say a big thank you to everyone who turned out on such a cold, snowy foggy night. This event would not have been possible without the help and support of many people.

"We would like to thank all those who participated in anyway on the night or in the lead up to the service. So many people, from the readers to the choir, did their parts so well. From the men who cleared the snow from the church grounds, those who helped in the car parks on such a cold night, to the Army Cadets for helping with the collection and our friends that helped supply shortbread and the ladies of the church for making the tea.A special word of thanks goes to the Choir, organists Paul Brush and George Irwin, who did an excellent job at blending the choirs together and leading the praise. The Bugles Pipes and Drums of 2 Royal Irish were warmly welcomed and enjoyed by everyone.

"We also appreciate the support received from the Royal Irish Regiment who played a big part in helping with the event and making the night run so smoothly and the PSNI for providing the necessary security.

"Many thanks goes to the Session of First Ballymena for the use of their church buildings, James Gregg for all his hard work and the Rev. Sinclair for his encouragement and his thoughtful words on the evening.

"To date we have raised 4600 from the collection and from people who sent a donation because they could not attend. A big thank you to everyone who donated.

"This will go far to help those that may unfortunately require help to heal the mental and physical scars of this tour and others."