Threat of rain puts dampener on RNLI sale

THIS year’s Henley RNLI car boot sale was hit by fears of bad weather.

Only 25 out of an expected 250 stallholders turned up for the event at Swiss Farm and Dry Leas in Marlow Road on Sunday as downpours were forecast. In fact, there was little rain.

As a result, the sale raised just £754 towards its target of £3,000. The stallholders who did atttend were offering a range of second-hand goods from antiques and housewares to children’s toys and stuffed animals.

The takings were boosted by a collection outside the Tesco store on Friday and Saturday, which raised another £1,148.

Norman Daniells, chairman of the Henley RNLI branch, said: “Sadly, the threat of rain put people off. They didn’t want to put the effort into packing and preparing in case it turned out not to be worth it. We’re very grateful to those who did turn up.

“We’ve been running the sale for 39 years and this has only happened a couple of times before.”