A Newark-based Royal Air Force charity has celebrated its 20th anniversary in style at one of the most iconic venues in the region.
Established 20 years ago, The RAF Music Charitable Trust was founded by Malcolm Goodman while serving as a musician in the Royal Air Force at RAF Cranwell.
After registering as a charity in 2004, the organisation has raises tens of thousands of pounds over the years through Royal Air Force band concerts, with the profits going to support armed forces veterans and service charities around the country.
To celebrate its 20th anniversary, the charity put on a concert with the Band of the RAF College Cranwell at Lincoln Cathedral, alongside the cathedral choir, which was attended by former Chief of the Air Staff and President of the charity, Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Graydon,
They will hold another celebration concert at the Palace Theatre in Newark on September 20.
Awarded the MBE from Queen Elizabeth II in 2001, now 71 years old, Malcolm is perhaps better known locally in his part time role on checkout at Asda Newark.
However, he is still very active as a musician in the region, supported by his two charity trustee colleagues and former RAF musicians, Malcolm still manages the charity on a voluntary basis in his spare time from his home in Newark.
Malcolm said: “After 20 years, and now in retirement, it is amazing to have reached this 20th anniversary and now be the major single sponsor of RAF charity concerts in the country — a situation I never imagined back in 2004 when I was also the PR and Marketing Manager for the Royal Air Force Music Services.
“I’m certainly very proud that through this work we’ve managed to raise around £100,000 in welfare funding, having organised around 100 concerts so far.”
Malcolm is also a Gulf War veteran, having served as a medic, the then war time role for armed forces musicians, at various field hospitals in the Saudi Arabia desert during the 1991 conflict.
