Cowes Yacht Haven played host to Her Majesty The Queen on the final day of her nationwide Diamond Jubilee tour when she visited Cowes’ most central and popular marina to meet representatives of a number of locally based charities.
Under glorious clear blue skies, the yachts in the marina were dressed overall and hundreds of people gathered to greet The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh. As she stepped ashore she was met by Cowes Yacht Haven’s Managing Director, Jon Pridham, and the crowd gave her a rousing cheer.
To music by a Sea Cadets band Her Majesty acknowleged the numerous sailors gathered on yachts before making her way to the Haven Events Centre where representatives of the selected charities were waiting to greet her.
During her visit The Queen spoke with representatives of:
Association of Sail Training Organisations: The UK’s National Sail Training Organisation. Its membership is made up of over 30 not-for-profit organisations that operate more than 50 sail training vessels around the UK.
Cowes and Ryde Sea Cadets: The sea cadets meet regularly to attend training courses and enter a variety of competitions. They also attend local events to fund raise both for their own Unit and for other charities that they support.
During the royal visit, cadets assisted with mooring lines from Leander’s launches and a small band played to entertain guests at Cowes Yacht Haven.
The Maritime and Volunteer Service (MVS): The Maritime Volunteer Service is a charity in the not-for-profit sector. Having started with nothing but enthusiasm, the Maritime Volunteer Service now has over 500 members in more than 30 Units around the coasts and estuaries of the United Kingdom, promoting maritime training by and for volunteers, helping to keep Britain’s maritime skills alive.
The Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust: the Cowes-based Cancer Trust takes young people aged between eight and 24 sailing to help them regain their confidence on their way to recovery from cancer, leukaemia and other serious illness.
Sea Scouts: Scouting on the Isle of Wight is flourishing. Representatives from the Island’s Sea Scout groups were presented to The Queen and talked about their work.
Royal Yachting Association (RYA) “OnBoard” Project: OnBoard is the RYA’s ten-year programme to introduce sailing and windsurfing as a sport to half a million young people, especially those who do not already have parental or peer links with the sport. This is being conducted through existing clubs that are affiliated to the RYA and are accredited RYA Training Centres. The clubs adopt local schools or youth organisations and the programme gets under way, generally to the mutual benefit of all concerned.
UKSA, a registered charity, is a globally recognised professional training establishment based in Cowes, providing training in watersports and yachting to the highest levels, including preparing people for careers in the super-yacht industry.
Cowes Sailability Club was formed in 2002 to promote and facilitate water sports for Island people with disabilities, and is affiliated to the RYA Sailability Trust.
The Island Youth Water Activities Centre.
All the organisations share a common goal of encouraging people into sailing and use sailing and water based activities to improve the lives of individuals from all walks of life.
Her Majesty the Queen Visits Isle of Wight On Final Day Of Diamond Jubilee Tour.
“We’re thrilled to have played an important part in the final day of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations. We’ve made significant upgrades to many aspects of the marina in recent years and the Queen’s visit has given us the perfect opportunity to showcase our new facilities and much-improved environment. The Queen has contributed so much to this country and we are honoured to have welcomed her here to Cowes Yacht Haven.” said Jon Pridham
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