Park Lane Stables has received a royal invitation following its successful crowdfunding campaign to raise £1m and save its home.
Mother and daughter Caitlin and Bess Limmer wrote to The Queen during the campaign and received a letter from the palace and an invitation in response.
Bess told BBC Breakfast that they had asked centre manager Natalie O’Rourke at the start of the campaign if there was anything they could do to help.
Natalie suggested they could write to some famous people, and so they contacted Her Majesty.
“We didn’t get many responses, but we did from The Queen,” she said.
Crown Equerry Colonel Toby Browne wrote to the stables, inviting 12 young people to visit the Royal Mews, which is home to The Queen’s horses, when pandemic restrictions allow.
The London-based Riding for the Disabled Association and Pony Club centre started a crowdfunder to buy its Teddington base as the landlord had decided to sell.
It reached its target on 18 February, thanks to donations from thousands of individuals.
“They do all the very unglamorous jobs, it’s a fairytale”
Park Lane stables manager Natalie tells #BBCBreakfast it’s the ‘icing on the cake’ that young volunteers have been invited to Buckingham Palace after reaching their fundraising target.https://t.co/6NHte44xSy pic.twitter.com/z87lzh3Jhw
— BBC Breakfast (@BBCBreakfast) February 25, 2021
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Natalie said she “nearly fainted” when they received the reply from The Queen.
“We are totally blown away by everything that’s happened, but that’s just the icing on the cake,” she said.
“I’m just so happy for the young people — what an amazing thing for them. They put all the effort in here, they muck out, they do all the unglamorous jobs, and now they’ve been invited to the palace. It’s a fairytale.”
She added: “There’s an army of young people and older people that make the magic happen here at the stables and in RDA all over the country, so it’s just amazing that Her Majesty has recognised their role because without them, this just would not happen.”
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