Wishing Well

Wishing Well in Fareham Shopping Centre

A Wishing Well was a fairly common means of charity collecting in many towns around the country. Club Secretary, Colin Frampton, through an engineering friend, had learned of a wooden wishing well being used in a Shopping Centre in Fleet. After seeing it we immediately set about discussing with the  Shopping Centre Director, Pam Marsden, the possibility of a replica being allowed to stand in a mall in the privately-owned Fareham Shopping Centre. Pam arranged a meeting with the ‘then’ owner who was happy to agree - especially when it was suggested that the ‘rent’ would be a contribution of part of the takings to the Centre’s charity. The bigger problem though was that the Well would cost around £5,000 to build which was a big gamble for the Club - and that was overcome only by the enthusiasm and foresight, not to say deep digging into the pockets of a handful of Rotarians who agreed initially to loan sums which between them almost covered the cost so the actual cost to the Club was minimal. Now many years later, the Well has helped raise many thousands of pounds for the various charities that have been associated with it.