It was a great success with a very high turnout of over 100 invited guests, as well as members of the public who joined us on a glorious sunny autumn day. The feeling of excitement was evident on the faces of those onlookers who could see what we had achieved.
Barmouth's Samba Band complemented Greg Courtney, started the ceremony
the morning with a great performance in great style with a bilingual speech
Batala Bermo Samba Band started the proceedings off with a lifting, energetic performance, which was well received by the growing crowd.
Greg Courtney, one of the Founder Members of the group, started the speeches off by welcoming everybody in both Welsh and English.
In a dig at the bad press Barmouth had received this year he added “Earlier this year there was an article about Barmouth in a number of newspapers stated that our resort was a blot on the landscape. That was the catalyst to show what Barmouth was really like. On a sunny autumn morning you can see for yourself how beautiful this area is”.
He went on to mention the future project of placing Palm Trees along the Promenade, and highlighted the two we had on display.
Hannah gave an account of her work Unexpected turn of events saw Tony
in this area and dolphins that live here the Postman become an unwilling star
Hannah Nuutilla was next to speak on behalf of the Seawatch Foundation and gave an insight to the local dolphins. She added, “many species of dolphins live, feed and breed off the west coast of Wales and I would ask the public to report and inform the Seawatch Foundation of sightings. I am delighted that it is a dolphin water feature that has been chosen.”
During her kind words, she was briefly interrupted by Tony, the local Postman, who proceeded up the steps of the Harbour Masters Office oblivious to events around him. As he turned to walk back down the steps he was greeted by a cheer from the stunned watching crowd, and sheepishly left the scene to rounds of applause and laughter.
Rob Williams, Mayor of Barmouth, Tony Bywater MBE shared his views
gave kind words to the growing crowd of the future of Barmouth and BRIG
Rob Williams, Chairperson of BRIG and Barmouth Town Mayor, thanked the committee members who were unable to attend, as well as others involved in the project. Both the Harbour Master and Maritime Officer were singled out, as well as Bruce Evans for the metal work.
Rob then introduced the final guest speaker, Tony Bywater MBE.
Tony said of the event “I think what I have seen here today has really excited me because what has been achieved here is absolutely fantastic”. He added “Barmouth isn’t standing still, it’s making an effort to come together to make the environment better”.
His enlightening speech concluded with “I commend everybody here today on the committee for what’s been achieved so far, and I really am proud that my company, Salop Leisure in Shrewsbury, can be involved with it and we shall continue to give it even more support over the forthcoming years. I believe it is going to grow and grow and grow and in 5 years time Barmouth is going to be one of the most talked about towns in the whole of Wales.”
Rob, Will, Rhian, Greg, Jane, The day was a huge success and we
Elfyn Llwyd MP, Steve and Dylan now have a new addition to the area
During this special event Elfyn Llwyd MP gave his view of the statue. “This Dolphin Water Feature is actually bigger than the mermaid at Copenhagen harbour, and who knows in time it might be just as recognisable in the future” he said.
The opening ceremony was a great success, and the glorious weather made it a perfect way to start off BRIG’s many varied and wonderful projects. We hope future projects will prove to be as rewarding as this and enjoyable for us all to be apart of.
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We would like to take this oportunity to thank all the people who have helped us achieve our aim. Rudi at Tywyn Construction and his team, Barry Davies Maritime Officer, Glyn the Harbour Master, Martin and Nan at Barmouth Communities First, Hannah Edwards Regeneration Officer, and the Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA) who gave us a grant for £2,500. And all the other people of the months that helped to make this such a great success.
Thank you all.
To see the BBC News Coverage of the Dolphin Water Feature Project please Click Here
For more pictures of our adventures so far please go to the gallery page.