HRH The Princess Royal will enjoy a brief motorboat ride and a tour of a replica Tall Ship when she visits a sailing charity in April…
Her Royal Highness will spend time meeting staff, volunteers and beneficiaries from Turn to Starboard, a Falmouth-based charity who help injured veterans by teaching them to sail.
The visit will take place on Monday, April 4 aboard the ‘Spirit of Falmouth’, a 92-foot replica schooner moored at Pendennis Marina in Falmouth Harbour that was donated to the charity by The Prince’s Trust.
Before a motorboat ride to the Tall Ship, The Princess will meet civic dignitaries and Turn to Starboard supporters at the charity’s office at Falmouth Marina.
The organisation is run by a group of ex-service, serving and civilian staff and volunteers who believe that sailing has a therapeutic and calming effect on participants. They help military personnel affected by operations to gain internationally recognised sailing qualifications to help start new careers anywhere in the world. They also offer sailing trips to Service families who have been affected by operations to spend time together on a skippered yacht.
Turn to Starboard founder RAF Squadron Leader (retired) Shaun Pascoe said he was very happy that Her Royal Highness would be visiting the charity: “It is a great honour for us to welcome such a distinguished guest on board, particularly someone with such close links to the military and to sailing. It will be a tremendous boost to our Round Britain crew and to all our supporters to have The Princess Royal taking an interest in the work of our charity. I am hugely grateful to all our volunteers and the military charities, businesses and local organisations who have given us such amazing support.”
While on board the Tall Ship, Her Royal Highness will meet some of the ex-service men and women who are planning a bid to sail around the British Isles in June.
The Turn to Starboard Round Britain Challenge 2016 will see a crew of 16 veterans – many with little or no sailing experience – sail aboard the ‘Spirit of Falmouth’ for the complete voyage or smaller sections of the route. They will be joined by two additional yachts also crewed by veterans, to meet an unexpectedly high number of applicants.
The 2000-mile voyage is expected to take 8 weeks and is planned as a way to help participants gain new skills while highlighting the challenges some veterans face.
Stuart Melville, spokesman for International Paints the expedition’s main sponsor, said: “We are very proud to support Turn to Starboard and the 2016 Round Britain Challenge. Our International® brand represents more than 120 years of experience in developing and supplying yacht coatings and it’s an honour that our products and expertise will help restore the Spirit of Falmouth and keep the charity sailing."
Turn to Starboard is supported by major military charities including Help for Heroes, ABF The Soldiers’ Charity, Royal Air Forces Association, Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity, The Poppy Factory and the Endeavour Fund (Royal Foundation of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry).