Joy of Christmas

FACED with the daunting prospect of raising several thousand pounds to finance Christmas lights in Reigate this year, the town’s Business Guild has invited people to come up with fundraising suggestions or even state whether they want the lights at all.

The vexed question of the town’s festive lights came up at the monthly meeting of the guild on Wednesday February 8.

The guild first launched a major fundraising drive to replace the Christmas lights, which were no longer serviceable, back in 2001, with members raising nearly £40,000 then and Reigate and Banstead Borough Council also kicking in a large sum.

With its Christmas lights coffers now running virtually on empty, and with the prospect that the lights will once again have to be replaced either totally or in part, the guild could have to raise at least £12,000, and possibly a great deal more, if the town is to celebrate Christmas this year in the style it has become accustomed to.

The borough council has Meeting at The Market pub in High Street, guild members, representing a cross-section of businesses in the town, were almost uninamious in their view that the festive lights were vital for the town’s commercial viability.

Martin Neve, guild treasurer, said that the guild’s own finances were in a healthy state.

However, its Christmas lights fund, after taking into account expenditure incurred in 2005, was virtually empty.

He suggested that the guild invite members to make an additional voluntary donation for the lights when invoiced for their annual membership fees.

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