Remember ‘Bann-Aid’?

IT might not seem like it, but it was 25 years ago on August 22, 1987, that the Ahoghill Young Farmers’ Club made headlines when they drove a specially adapted 4WD tractor with a ‘Star’ slurry tanker down the River Bann, all in the aid of charity.

The event called “Bann-Aid” started at the Newferry at 11am when the then Club Leader, Ian Small, was given a rousing send off by the huge crowd and the then Mayor of Ballymena, the late Alderman Sandy Spence.

A TV film crew boarded a boat and followed the tractor and tanker on part of its journey towards Portglenone Bridge, where huge crowds brought the village to a standstill.

The finishing point was 10 miles downstream at Portna, near Kilrea, where the then assistant Club Leader, David Gillespie, brought the tractor and tanker out of the water, bringing to an end what was one of the most memorable days in the history of the Ahoghill Young Farmers’ Club.

A total of £6,041 was raised for charity through direct giving and the sponsorship of many local businesses, all benefiting the Club’s two chosen charities, Multiple Sclerosis and Diabetes.

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