MUSIC, merriment and money raised was the theme of Saturday night at Bodmin’s Masons Arms pub as more than £2,000 was raised for a new charity.

A packed pub enjoyed a night of music from Jordan Lee Collins as part of a fundraiser in aid of ‘MIKES Trust’, a charity in the process of being set up by the family of Bodmin stabbing victim Michael Riddiough-Allen which plans to raise awareness of and promote solutions to the problems of knife crime, particularly in rural areas. The plans for the trust are influenced by the family’s own experiences.

£1,700 was raised on the night, with the final total set to exceed £2,000 as the currently announced total does not include an ongoing blind auction for an authentic England rugby shirt signed by former captain Martin Johnson, which had a starting bid of £500, or money raised from the collection tins.

The money was raised through a barbecue where all the proceeds were donated to MIKES Trust, in addition to certain drinks on the bar and a raffle comprising donations made by businesses and individuals.

The donations ranged from a signed Exeter Chiefs rugby shirt to a family swim session and a petrol hedge strimmer with at least 23 prizes on offer.

Announcing the amount raised, a spokesperson for the Masons Arms said: “Wow. What a night! People of Bodmin you can be very proud. A fantastic turnout and incredible generosity shown by everyone. A whopping £1,700 was raised for MIKES Trust and we still have the amount from the Martin Johnson shirt auction to add to the total plus the amount collected in the collection tins!

“Simply amazing, a huge thank you to everyone who came along and supported. Thank you to the fantastic people who were selling the raffle tickets and collecting money through the donation tins and all the people who donated prizes.

“We would also like to say a very special thank you to all the suppliers who donated the food for the BBQ and the brilliant Jordan Lee Collins for donating his fee for what was a great evening of music.”

Responding to the announcement of the amount raised, the sister of Mike Allen said: “Reading this, my eyes have filled with tears. The evening was truly fantastic. If I am honest, my husband and I discussed moving out of Bodmin initially (in the immediate aftermath of Mike’s death), there is a lot of hurt for us, but the last few weeks have shown the true love of the community and why we should be proud to live here.

“I promise, we will make a change because of you.”