IT was the biggest event on the calendar, but now organisers have reluctantly admitted the carnival is over in Liss. They said this week that they were desperately short of volunteers to help organise the carnival. And they also faced a constant battle to find funding. Liss independent fundraising trust (LIFT) committee members Lorraine Westlake and Kim Mannerings said in a joint statement this week: "It is with regret that Liss, like so many other local villages, is to lose its carnival. "The members of LIFT who have run the carnival for the past five years feel that it is a great shame, but we do not have the manpower or resources to run the event to the high standard of previous years. "We have asked for help and support in the past from local businesses, groups, councils, and the people of Liss, and, as always, it is just the same few that come forward. To those few, we offer you our greatest thanks and appreciation." They added that the lack of willing volunteers last year meant they had to resort to asking friends and family who came from as far away as Lindford, Thatcham and Oxford. "Without the firm commitment of a reliable body of helpers, we at LIFT feel we have no option but to announce that the carnival will not go ahead this year. "We are very very sad about this," said Mrs Westlake, "but there are only seven of us on the committee and we have to organise road closures, get insurance, organise everything on the day, and find money to fund it every year, and it has been very difficult." She stressed there were "a few very faithful" volunteers who supported the committee year after year and that "these people have been wonderful but the fact is that when you look at the population of Liss, they are only a very few people." Mrs Westlake said the loss of the carnival was a blow as it had provided entertainment for villagers for more than 50 years, with attendances of around 2,500 every year. "We have gone through all sorts of emotions about making this decision. We don't want to admit defeat, but we simply cannot carry on with this sort of workload. "People on the committee have other commitments as well, and we all have families and full-time jobs as well." She said letters had now gone out to village organisations and supporters informing them that there would not be a carnival this summer. And Mrs Westlake said she hoped that the letters would provoke some response from villagers. "On a slightly more optimistic note, as we live in hope that the support we require to run the carnival is out there, we hope a more favourable response to our pleas may be found for next year and that we are able to continue to provide a carnival for Liss."
