FUN ON THE FARM

Following the enormous success of last year's event, Corries Farm Butchers have announced a date for the 'Fun on the Farm' family day, an annual charity initiative which will see the farm transform into a myriad of fun and entertainment for all on Saturday 24th August.

From 12-6pm, the family-run farm in Newtownards will open its gates to welcome children of all ages for a day on the farm to raise proceeds for the Northern Ireland Children's Hospice. Last year saw thousands of families from across the country flock to the event to enjoy a day filled with vintage tractor runs, bouncy castles, petting farms from the Ark Open Farm, fire engines, face painting, helium balloons and much more. This year the Corrie family are looking forward to welcoming back an even greater turn out with hopes of topping the £25,000 that was raised in 2012 from the open day.

At the helm of the Corries farms is Will Corrie who is looking forward to this year's 'Fun on the Farm' event. He commented:

"I am delighted to confirm that we will be hosting this event for another year and hope that we can top the epic success of last year. We were overwhelmed by the generosity of those who attended in 2012 which served as a great inspiration to run the event for a second year.

"There will be a chance for people to see feeding, livestock and other aspects of life on a working farm, alongside a model railway, BBQ, play areas and a host of stands displaying a range of products from the latest farm machinery to hand made jewellery and crafts and even some Tickety Moo Ice Cream! There will also be a 'digger challenge' hosted by U-hire which proved to be very popular last year.

"The daytime event will be followed by an evening concert which will be held in one of our barns from 7-9pm featuring the New Irish Arts Choir, Orchestra and guest soloists which we expect to be very popular.

"This is a fun day out and a fantastic chance for children to find out about life on the farm as well as a great opportunity for those well-accustomed to farm-life to mingle with other farm folk. We're going to be putting a lot of effort into ensuring we top last year's amount raised so hopefully everyone will get behind us and come along for some fun on the farm!"

The Corrie family have chosen Northern Ireland Children's Hospice to be the benefiting charity for 2013. All the money raised through this event will be used to provide specialist nursing care to local life limited children as well as practical, emotional and bereavement support for their families.

Noreen Kennedy, Community Fundraising Manager For Northern Ireland Children's Hospice said;

"We are excited to be involved in this Fun on the Farm Day and are looking forward to working with the Corrie family on this event. We truly appreciate the support we receive from local communities across Northern Ireland. It is only through the generosity from these communities that we are able to provide our services which almost 300 children and their families depend on."

Entry will be priced at £5 for adults and kids admission is free. Tickets for the concert are £10 each.

For more information visit www.corriesonthefarm.co.uk