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NEWLYN'S fish festival will bring thousands to the village on Bank Holiday Monday, August 25.
The
event, which is the annual fund-raiser for the Royal National Mission
to Deep Sea Fishermen in Cornwall, showcases the diverse and vibrant
array of species and traditional skills practised in the harbour and is
hugely popular with locals and visitors alike.
Over
the years, the Newlyn branch of the RNMDSF has supported hundreds of
families of loved ones whose lives have been lost at sea.
Caroline
Cripps, from Porthleven, who was left supporting four children after
her husband Chris died in a fishing accident in 1997, said she will
never forget the strength of its support.
"Our
son was only seven months old when the police knocked on my door to say
Chris had got trapped in ropes and pulled overboard.
"He died before I got the chance to see him, it was absolutely devastating."
Caroline
said the mission was behind her immediately. "David Mann, the
superintendent of the mission at the time, came to the house and said:
'Gather up your urgent bills and we'll get them paid off and out of the
way.'
"At
the time I didn't realise how important this simple act was, but later
I appreciated that the extra burden of worrying about bills probably
would have pushed me over the edge."
However, it was not just the initial problems that the mission helped Caroline and her children to deal with.
As
bad luck would have it, Caroline was diagnosed with breast cancer
within six months of losing her husband. She said the support continued
throughout and even up to this day.
"David and his wife were offering to babysit when I had hospital appointments and nothing was too much trouble.
"And still today, if I need any support I can still turn to the mission."
article copyright THE CORNISHMAN
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