IN ONE of their final acts before disbanding Penarth Male Voice Choir have donated nearly £400 to the local volunteer lifeboat crew.

After more than 110 years singing in the town, since its formation in 1896, members of the choir chose to donate all of their remaining funds to the organisation that saves lives at sea.

Representatives of Penarth RNLI attended a special event where they were presented with the kind donation last week.

The event, which took place in Redlands House last Wednesday, August 6, was attended by the remaining members of the choir (whose ages ranged from 14 to the late 80s) and supporters and fundraisers from both the choir and the Penarth lifeboat fundraising branch.

Penarth Town Mayor Councillor Martin Turner also attended the event, along with members of Penarth lifeboat crew.

Choir accompanist Jeanie Jones said: “Penarth Male Voice Choir was formed in 1896 and is the second oldest in Wales, but very sadly we’ve had to disband because we have so few members. We had some money left in our funds, and after a vote between the members, we decided to donate it to the RNLI."

Jeanie, who has been the accompanist for the past 20 years and whose musical talents have included writing and performing a song for the Queen, said that the choir really didn’t want to have to disband, but as all the remaining members were getting so much older, it was inevitable.

“It was a hard decision but we’ve performed to some wonderful audiences in Penarth and across the Vale of Glamorgan," she said.

"Many of the gentlemen in the choir have been members for more than 50 years, but now the time has come to finish. We hope the RNLI will benefit from our donation."

Laurie Pavlin, Penarth RNLI’s sea safety officer, said the crew was extremely grateful for the choir’s generous support.

“The choir performed four years ago at the naming ceremony of Penarth’s Atlantic 85 lifeboat, so it was lovely to meet up with them again," he said.

“The RNLI is funded entirely by donations like this, and without the generosity of individuals and of organisations like Penarth Male Voice Choir, we could not continue our voluntary work to help save lives at sea."