A group of Torbay Hospital’s Forrest Ward staff past and present gathered at the Babbacombe Inn on Friday 7 February for a meal and party and left with a cheque for £500 for the ward.  Babbacombe Inn regular and previous patient of Forrest Ward, Ray Northcott, wanted to say thank you to the ward for the treatment he had received there. He mentioned the idea to Martyn Strange, who owns the Babbacombe Inn, who decided to add to the fundraising by making a donation from the pub.

Martyn said “Ray is a well-known face at the Babbacombe Inn and seemed really keen to support Forrest Ward.  I know he thinks very highly of the staff there and appreciates the work that they do.  I was more than happy to get involved and hopefully the donation will prove useful to them.”

The cheque was presented by Ray and Babbacombe Inn General Manager, Aaron Checklin.  Once the presentation was over the group settled down to their meal after which they enjoyed live entertainment from great duo, Midnight Affair.

Forrest Ward Manager, Allie Taylor, said “We were delighted to received this donation and it will be put to good use improving the comfort and experience of the patients in Forrest Ward.”  She added “It was very kind of Ray to think of us and to want to help in this way and we’re also very grateful to Martyn for making a donation on behalf of the Babbacombe Inn.”  Staff from the ward who attended the evening, along with Allie, included Rob McCarthy, Carol White, Leanne Radford, Sally Martin, Wendy Stocker, Lin Brown, Jo Meaden and Edna Weaver who organised the event.