Cornwallis Circle was filled with families, friends, dogs, music and local organisations on Saturday 5 September as the Revival Community Fun Day brought Whitstable together for an afternoon of
fun, and a very important cause.
Created to raise funds for Revival’s Community Mental Health Programme, the day combined all
the things Revival believes help build stronger communities: connection, activity, music, food,
conversation and people simply spending time together.
There was plenty happening throughout the afternoon, with local stalls and organisations, food,
music and entertainment, tombola and prizes, alongside some slightly less conventional
fundraising, including the Revival Lego Walk Challenge, which saw brave participants take on a
path of 20,000 Lego bricks.
The Junior Bake Off brought out Whitstable’s young bakers, with Copperfields generously giving
their time to judge the entries as well as sponsoring the baking prizes. Winners also received a
beautiful bouquet gifted by Jo Taylor at Fabulous flowers.
But one of the biggest surprises of the day came towards the end of the afternoon. We had hoped
Whitstable’s famously dog-loving community might support our dog show, but the huge last-minute turnout completely exceeded expectations, with dogs and their humans packing an arena that suddenly looked much too small. Ross from The Offy took on judging duties, while Millie and the Tiger generously sponsored the prizes and the dogs wagged, sat, and danced their way through the judging.
The day was also supported by businesses, organisations and community groups from across
Whitstable, including Rock Paper Scissors Seaglass, Copperfields, Berserk Dance,
Whitstable Lions, Whitstable Sea Cadets, The Offy, Food Friends UK and Millie and the
Tiger.
Most importantly, none of it could have happened without our volunteers. From setting up and
running stalls to serving, clearing, selling tickets, helping with activities and staying until the very
end, they made the whole day possible. Special thanks to Errin, Tracey, Sophie, Rik on the day
and the rest of the Revival Management & Strategic Committee for all their hard work planning and
running the day!
Seeing people of all ages come together at Cornwallis Circle was exactly what the Community Fun
Day was intended to achieve. The money raised will help Revival continue to provide free,
accessible community mental health and wellbeing support in Whitstable, particularly for people
experiencing loneliness, isolation or struggling with their mental health.
A grand total of £2774 was raised on the day – thank you to every volunteer, business,
organisation, stallholder, baker, dog owner, performer and visitor who played a part.
Whitstable showed what can happen when a community gets behind something together.
