ALTON Community Centre bosses are said to be “over the moon” following the receipt of a £30,000 windfall that will buy a much-needed minibus.

The centre is one of the main beneficiaries of the estate of the late Grace Atkinson which has made £135,000 available to charitable organisations, mainly local.

Donations to the beneficiaries were made during a special evening hosted by the Rotary Club of Alton, during which it was revealed that, while not raised in Alton, Grace had adopted the town as her own.

Born in Grimsby, north Lincolnshire, in 1897, Grace was affected like so many of her generation by the terrible loss of family and friends at the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

Grace became a Quaker and a pacifist and never married.

She worked in the family gentlemen’s clothing shop in Lincolnshire for many years but moved to Alton after the Second World War.

Together with her friend, Carol Harrington, they ran a children and ladies clothing shop in town, living in Windmill Lane and, later, Lenten Street.

When she died in 1991 Grace left the life interest in her estate to some relatives, but with some of the capital to be made available for distribution to selected charities.

As time has evolved, Grace’s great nephew, Martin Atkinson, has worked with Gideon Christofoli, of Booker and Bolton solicitors in Alton, to seek out suitable charities to benefit from Grace’s legacy in line with her wishes.

As Mr Atkinson is a Rotarian with the Tunbridge Wells Club, he contacted Rosemary Arrowsmith Oliver, of the Alton Rotary Club, for ideas on charitable beneficiaries.

According to an Alton Rotary spokesman, while several were considered it was decided that the main beneficiaries should be the Alton Community Centre, which is in need of a new minibus, and the Alton College Foundation, sponsoring students’ education.

Other charities confirmed are The Fishermen’s Mission, reflecting Grace’s upbringing in a fishing community, and Open Sight, the Hampshire organisation which aids partially-sighted people and which has a thriving club in Alton.

Commenting on behalf of the Amery Street-based community centre, manager Maria Elliott said that receipt of the legacy could not have been better timed.

“To say we are delighted would be an understatement,” she said.

“Finally we can replace our old minibus with one that has heating and air-conditioning to make life more pleasant for our (elderly) community club members.

“We received £30,000 from the Grace Atkinson Trust and any money left over after the bus purchase will be used toward our ongoing building works.”

Preparing to go off minibus shopping this week, Mrs Elliott confirmed that the new bus would need to be accessible, complete with a tail lift, and have 15 passenger seats.

She added: “We are hoping that once we have the new vehicle the general public and local clubs and societies will wish to hire it, which will all help with the running costs.”