FRED TAYLOR MEMORIAL BENCH, AIR AMBULANCE DONATION

EDIT/UPDATE: This is the bench we have secured for Freddie. The view from the bench can be seen below. Thank you to every single one of you who has donated, it means the world and more. For any newcomers, welcome, and thanks in advance for any donations you are willing to contribute. Further updates from council are pending. 
Scott. 



On Thursday 11th June, 2020, we all received the tragic, sad news that our dear friend Freddie Taylor had
sadly passed away. It has hit our small community of friends dramatically and we cannot begin to imagine the pain his family are feeling throughout this ordeal. 

Freddie was an extremely kind hearted-soul. He would always be there to help people out if he was able to, and this is reflected in all the tributes that have appeared on Facebook since we received the devastating news.  

I am setting up this fundraiser to show respect to the life of Fred and help pay the costs of a Memorial bench in East Cliff in Folkestone  for Freddie to spend the remainder of his time on earth. It is with a heavy heart that I am writing this, and it still doesn't feel quite real yet, but I believe this to be one of the most suitable memorials for Freddie, as people who know him, will know that there's nothing more he would have loved to have him remembered by than cotching at a banging zoot spot bench with a peng view and an opportunity to make jokes and have a laugh with his friends and family, who he held so close to his heart. 

The current fee for a new bench is £1,530. This fee includes:

the bench
installation costs
a plaque
two maintenance refurbishments over 10 years

You can sponsor a brand new bench and plaque for 10 years at a time. Sponsorship can be renewed after this time by completing the renewal application form. Renewing sponsorship costs £900.

If your bench is more than ten years old you will have to re-sponsor it.  You will need to complete the application form and pay the fee of £900.

A non-refundable deposit of £150 must be paid when you apply to cover the cost of the plaque. This will be subtracted from the total fee amount.

https://www.folkestone-hythe.gov.uk/article/619/Memorial-benches?fbclid=IwAR0GydOnmmkIXDDrDezkGB11X6Okjtmbe3BSLwNvEwTGnJZg4PGTuKMcDkI

This information above has been copied from the Folkestone and Hythe District Council website concerning memorial benches. From the above information, we will need to raise £2,430 in order to cover the cost of the bench. This includes all that is stated above, the bench itself, installation, a plaque, two maintenance refurbishments for £1,530 and also the £900 to renew the sponsorship of the bench after 10 years. I myself will front the initial deposit of £150, so once our target has been met we will be able to provide everybody with evidence from the council that the funds raised will be going straight to payment of the bench. 

We have submitted an application form and will receive notification from the council regarding the status of the application a few weeks from now. Once this happens I will pay the deposit and update the fundraiser with all the necessary evidence so that there is complete transparency and everybody can see their donations being used for what it's intended for, Freddie's memorial bench. It takes 12 weeks after the application has been submitted for the bench to be constructed, so we have ample time to raise the funds needed. 

If we are able to fund more money than the actual cost of the bench, we will donate the rest of the proceeds to the Kent, Sussex and Surrey Air Ambulance for their incredibly hard work keeping people safe and saving lives, they are an incredible charity who were there for Freddie twice in his short life. Evidence and receipts for this will also be uploaded to this post so everyone can see. 

I hope we can come together to show our support for Fred's life, whether that be through a small donation or a large one, every little helps and will be massively appreciated.

Hopefully we can use the bench as a time for friends and family to reflect on our shared memories with Freddie, and hopefully create new ones. 

Rest in paradise Freddie Taylor, you were taken far too soon.

We love you mate