The dedicated volunteers who raise money for Abergavenny Alzheimer’s Fundraisers Group value every donation they receive from the public - but the generosity of one local supporter has left them speechless.

Small household items donated to the charity are regularly sold from a stall at Abergavenny market while large pieces of furniture are taken to Nigel Ward and Company auctions at Pontrilas.

When a local woman recently gave them a heavy wooden bookcase it was duly transported to the auction house with instructions for the auctioneers to sell it with no reserve.

“We said we’d be happy with anything it made and didn’t really think any more about it - in fact none of us even attended the auction,” explained one of the volunteers.

“But when we checked to see how much the items we had sent to the sale had raised we discovered to our amazement that the bookcase, which turned out to be 19th Century and made from Rosewood, had sold for £1,620!

“Obviously we didn’t feel it would be right to keep that much money, but when we told the person who’d donated it what it had made she said she’d known it was valuable and wanted us to keep it.

“We were absolutely thrilled. It’s a huge bonus for us. We’re so grateful to her, and to the auctioneers who did their research into the piece and managed to get such a good price.”

The group is totally dependent on the public donating sufficient items to make up a stall at the market and will arrange collection if required. Please call Carole on 01873 850647 if you’d like to help.