RAF Association

Military association clubs are dying off across the country as Britain’s war veterans grow older.

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But Weston's Royal Air Forces Association (RAFA) Club is bucking the trend. A strong association with RAF Locking and Westons popularity with retired people means the club is actually expanding and just three years ago it moved to its first dedicated meeting place, Eagle House, a three storey HQ in Alexandra Parade.

At its core is a group of ex-forces members who have served in places as far apart as the Middle East, the Falklands, Borneo and Cyprus, and who have been RAFA members for years.

Then there is a healthy complement of serving military members plus families and friends, known as associate members.

Socialising is a key part of club life. Many of its 400 members, of which a fifth are serving in the forces, get together weekly for things like dinners, concerts and quiz nights.

Club secretary, Iain Norris MBE, who served in Cyprus and Germany, said: RAFA is generally all about comradeship and social events. It is the people who make the club. They are determined and dedicated and loyal to their friends.

Members also organise and take part in one-off events such as the memorial service which took place in Weston on Sunday to remember those lost in the Battle of Britain.

If members need time away they can call on a number of retreat homes, such as the 38-place Flowerdown House in Beach Road, which offers all the luxuries of a swish hotel as well as limited nursing support if required.

An important part of club life is raising money to keep such retreats running. Luckily for Westons RAFA Club, its members are big raffle fans and hold such fund-raisers almost every week.

They are also regulars at events like Helidays where they collect donations and altogether over 60,000 has been raised by the club over the last 10 years.

Club president, retired Squadron Leader Ian Macpherson, who saw active service in Borneo among other places, said: We are very much part of Weston life.

If it wasnt for its people then we would not be here, we wouldnt be able to afford to exist.
The club has its own band which, under the direction of bandmaster Peter Skellon, has raised over 33,000 for RAFA plus lots of cash for other good causes.