Chapter Chat: Royal Black Institution's sir knights pitch in for £100,000 fundraising goal
The Royal Black Institution has set the ball rolling for its 2026/2027 biennial charity appeal, which has the imaginative title of Boots, Belief & Beyond.
The project sees the institution teaming up with Faith Mission, with the goal of raising £100,000 to fund the creation of all-weather football pitches at the evangelical Christian group’s centre at Mahon Road, Portadown.
The charity appeal was launched at the institution’s Loughgall headquarters, with Sovereign Grand Master Rev William Anderson describing it as “a very exciting project”.
He said the initiative was “designed to promote youth development by weaving together faith-based principles and active community involvement through sports”.
He added: “By providing a supportive environment, participants are encouraged to develop both spiritually and personally, laying the foundation for a brighter future.”
Also speaking at the event was Simon Walsh, who has run the Faith Mission Centre in Portadown, along with his wife Rebecca, since 2023.
Simon, who is also the deputy master of Mount Horeb RBP 170, said: “Through the means of sport we can connect with young people.”
He said the Faith Mission centre hoped to attract those in the community who did not currently attend church or youth clubs.
The target was to create two five-a-side pitches and one bigger pitch, all of which could be used in all weather, and enhance the use of the centre throughout the year.
Rev Anderson said the Royal Black Institution was excited to team up with the Faith Mission, which did “invaluable work in the community in spreading the Christian message through its evangelism”.
“Our membership will be working very hard over the coming months to meet the overall target of £100,000.”
The aim was to promote youth development. It was important for the institution to be involved in creating the future leaders and membership, and this could potentially be provided through sport and other related activities.
He said young people today were challenged about where they can go safely, adding: “In the Faith Mission Centre they can come together with people of like minds.
“They can develop spiritually and personally. We pray that God will touch their lives and that will lead to a brighter future for all.”
Describing the project as “a great legacy for the future”, he said he had no doubt all levels of the institution would lend their support to the fundraising efforts.
Mr Walsh said Faith Mission centres would be celebrating 140 years in October 2026.
Faith Mission had seen many generations come and go, and over time has had to adapt and change the way its ministry was conducted.
He said: “We have always sought to keep to the core of what the Mission was raised up for, and that was to reach young and old in rural areas of Britain and Ireland with the gospel.”
He said the project had the potential of enhancing the use of the centre, particularly in the winter months, when the weather meant the grass areas could not be used for sport.
Also present at the event was Faith Mission’s Ireland director, Andrew McCullough, a member of RBP 43, Ballymena.
The Faith Mission’s Portadown centre has sleeping capacity for around 100, having 12 bedrooms and seven dormitories. Other facilities include a sports hall, conference room, lounge and games room, equipped for snooker, pool, table tennis, table football, and air hockey.
The Royal Black has a long-established and distinguished record for charity initiatives, donating more than £850,000 to charitable causes since the designated appeals began 24 years ago.
The first appeal was launched during Queen Elizabeth’s Golden Jubilee in 2002 and raised £66,000 for Chest, Heart and Stroke NI.
Other recipients have included Action MS, £80,000 in 2004; Open Doors Ministry in Sudan, £90,000 in 2006; Diabetes UK, £77,000 in 2008; Kiwoko Hospital in Uganda, £105,000 in 2010; Alzheimer’s Society, £95,0000 in 2012; the Bible Society and Mission Aviation Society, £85,000 in 2014; MacMillan Cancer Support, £105,000 in 2016; the Child Evangelism Fellowship, £77,500 in 2018; and the Somme Nursing Home, £65,000 in 2022.
Rev Anderson said: “One of the core objectives of the Royal Black Institution is to engage in Christian and charitable outreach.
“Sir knights never fail to engage fully in the biennial charity initiatives, and it has resulted in hundreds of thousands of pounds being raised and donated to very worthwhile causes, large and small, over the last 24 years.”