THE Crash Box and Classic Car Club of Devon has donated a total of £12,500 to a number of local charities following the success of its 48th Historic Vehicle Gathering held at Powderham Castle, Kenton, in July.

The annual two-day event not only brought together a display of nearly 1,500 historic vehicles, but also raised funds for the chosen headline charities of Hospiscare (Exeter, Mid and East Devon), Motor Neurone Disease Association (Torbay & District) and Sid Valley Memory Café and Admiral Nurse. Donations were also made to various other local charities represented at the Historic Vehicle Gathering.

Attending the Crash Box Club’s September meeting were Jake Cawthorne from Hospiscare and Helen Mackie from the Motor Neurone Disease Association representing the Torbay group, who told the Club’s members about how their charities help local communities and how the donations from the Club will be spent.

Crash Box Club President, Mike Overfield Collins, said: ‘We are delighted to support the work of all of these chosen charities, as they all do a fantastic job helping so many people in our locality.”

He continued: “While visitor numbers at the Historic Vehicle Gathering were down this year as a result of some unseasonal heavy showers, our efforts to control the huge costs of a show of this size allowed us to support every one of the good causes at the show.’

The first Historic Vehicle Gathering was held in 1975 and since then it has enabled the Crash Box Club to donate in the region of £250,000 to many local charities and some national charities. This achievement saw the club receiving recognition at the National Car Clubs Awards in 2022 where it won the Charitable Endeavours Award for its continued fundraising activities over the years.

► For further information about the Crash Box Club, click here.