A special event to launch a spectacular Charity Space Odyssey video staged by Shropshire’s new community radio station has been hailed a huge success.

Around 200 people watched the premiere of the INTune radio space flight video at St Mary’s church in Shrewsbury, which saw 33 county charities teaming up with the station on a three-hour balloon trip to the edge of space.

INTune founder Wayne Flynn said the evening had been an out-of-this-world experience and helped the station recruit new volunteers, raise money for the Lingen Davies cancer charity and welcome new advertisers to the station.

Shropshire’s High Sheriff Selina Graham and Lingen Davies head of fundraising Helen Knight joined business leaders, charity representatives and community groups at the event, which featured a stunning performance from the Shrewsbury Rock Choir as well as the launch of the video.

“The night was everything we had hoped for – and more,” said Wayne.

“As well as celebrating the amazing work of our county’s charity sector, people enjoyed great food and drink, found out a bit more about INTune and helped raise some much-needed funds for Lingen Davies.

“INTune is run entirely by volunteers, and we were overjoyed to sign up some new recruits and make new advertising contacts and to have so many people pledge their support to the station.

“And it was great to hear the High Sheriff thank us for our work and talk about the importance of volunteering and the community.”

Wayne announced plans for INTune to launch a countywide community campaign in 2023 – with volunteers visiting all four corners of the county to talk to residents and gather community stories.

“A central part of INTune is telling some of the great, untold stories of the fantastic community and charity work going on all over Shropshire, and this will be a key theme as we continue to grow in 2023.

“We also have exciting plans – which are just starting to take shape – to set up our own studio in Shrewsbury which will open up numerous new opportunities for us. It looks as if 2023 will be the year we truly take off and reach for the stars, just like our charity space odyssey.

“I want to thank all our volunteers and everyone who has helped us for their support – and urge anyone with an interest in great local radio to get in touch to see how they can join in and help shape our future.

“And anyone who wants to know more can follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook, as well as listening to the station each and every day.”

Shrewsbury-based chartered civil and structural design engineers Thomas Consulting was one of the sponsors of the space odyssey and said it was delighted with the success of the event.

Diane Brown, from Thomas Consulting, brought along radio mascot DJ Schnauzer and said: “It was wonderful to see so much positivity for such a fantastic community initiative. The whole of Shropshire will benefit from everything INTune is doing and we are delighted to be supporting the station.”

The space launch took place earlier this year and saw the balloon soar 100,000ft above the Earth to capture video from the edge of space. The names of the 33 charity partners were taken on the flight to help raise their profile and showcase the work they do.

INTune is the new community radio station covering the whole of Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin with a mission to support local business, charities, and communities. It can be listened to through apps on both Apple and Android devices and also online at intune-radio.co.uk

For more information about the station – or to advertise or volunteer – please email info@intune-radio.co.uk