Bognor Regis and Chichester Samaritans host ‘SamsFest’ at Bognor FC

SamsFest was an afternoon of live music and fun for all ages in aid of Bognor Regis, Chichester & District Samaritans. The event took place at Bognor Regis Football Club. We hired the Club for the day and filled its spacious venue, Seasons, with lively music and activities for attendees, with proceeds going towards the branch.

The event took lots of planning and organisation, and promoting the event required a coordinated effort from the team. We advertised the event all around the area – perhaps you saw our large posters on the Bognor seafront shelters, the A4 posters around supermarkets, or the listings on local Facebook groups and event websites. We even got a shout-out on BBC Radio Sussex.

On the day, we decorated the venue with green balloons and Samaritans banners, and there was green lighting around the bar. It certainly looked the part, perfect for a Samaritans fundraiser.

For the entertainment, we made sure there was something for everyone to enjoy, and the afternoon featured an eclectic mix of music from exceptional local talent.

To kick off SamsFest, 4Sheets Shantymen took to the stage, singing traditional sea shanties and sea songs. Their acapella harmonies provided a wonderful opening to the event.

Kayla and the Cards were up next, bringing us back to the 80s with their high-energy covers. It was a fun set full of classics to sing along to!

Rapper and songwriter Adam Turner then played a set full of his original material. Adam is passionate about mental health, and it was a treat to have such emotive and powerful hip-hop featured at SamsFest.

Next up, in a slight change to the billed line-up, was The Unknown, formed with members from Big Red Band and A Tad Tighter. They got the audience up on their feet with high-octane rock and funk music.

Lastly, A Tad Tighter closed the event with a huge selection of party hits. It was a treat to see so many people dancing and singing along to their favourites – a brilliant way to end the day.

And let’s not forget DJ Sid Marshall, who kept the music going between each live performance (and who was very kind to lend a hand as we were setting up).

There was plenty going on as well as live music, and many of the extra activities were run by our volunteers. We had a book stall, a tombola (and our volunteers made sure there were tons of prizes up for grabs), a face painting stall, and a couple of fun guessing games: a ‘Guess the Name of the Cuddly Toy’’ game, where everyone could choose from a list of potential names for a toy dragon, with the correct guess winning the toy, and a ‘Guess the Number of Sweets in the Jar’ game. We also had a raffle, and it was lovely that so many businesses were happy to donate prizes.

Lots of delicious food was on offer, too; a burger van, pizza van, and ice cream van were on site to ensure attendees were well fed.

After months of planning and organising, we were very pleased with how the day went. We’re ecstatic to announce that the event raised £2,500 for the branch, an exceptional total. It is the largest fundraising event the branch has ever put together, and many huge thank-yous are in order.

First of all, our branch is lucky to have so many amazing volunteers who worked together to make the day a success. The members of the organising committee, the volunteers who on the day ran the activities or sold tickets at the door, and everyone who secured prizes for the games and raffle – they all made SamsFest possible.

We would like to thank all the artists who donated their time and performed on the SamsFest stage in support of us. They are all brilliant local musicians and songwriters, and we encourage everyone to follow them and look out for their gigs.

• A Tad Tighter,
• Kayla and the Cards
• Big Red Band
• Adam Turner
• 4Sheets Shantymen
• DJ Sid Marshall

We would also like to express our thanks to the staff at Bognor Regis Football Club for their help during the day and for running the busy bar, and to the vendors for providing excellent food. We would also like to thank Georgia Parker, who helped with the face painting.

We’re grateful to everyone who bought a ticket and came along to enjoy the afternoon. We hope you had as much fun as we did and we hope to see you at other Samaritans events soon. Your support means the world to us.

And lastly, special thanks are in order to Wendi Gardner, who not only performed during the day but played a vital role within the organisation team. We couldn’t have done it without her.

We’re thrilled to have a community that values us, and we’re looking forward to organising more fundraising events in the future. We hope these events will continue to bring the community together to raise awareness of our hard work and celebrate it. Our mission is to make sure no one ever feels alone when they are going through a difficult time, and the money raised at SamsFest will help ensure we’re always there to answer calls from those in need.