Family and friends of a prison officer, who sadly died of prostate cancer, tee’d off in his memory at a charity golf event.

The event was held at Wareham golf club on Wednesday, September 27 to mark the second anniversary of the death of Gary Somerset, who worked at Dorchester Prison until its closure in 2013.

More than 10 golfing teams, made up of Gary’s colleagues, friends and family, competed in the event and helped to raise money and awareness for Dorset Cancer Care Foundation and Prostate Cancer.

Keith Fisher MBE, one of the event’s organisers, said: “It went very well, we had representative from Dorset Cancer Care and also Prostate Cancer UK, so they could spread the word.

“It was great as I say we had chipping competitions and two putting competitions. Everyone had a go. I would like to thank the local golf club for their support. Local businesses were also tremendous in donating prizes to the raffle.

“We did a lot better than I thought, I was hoping to raise near to £2,000, but after the final count we beat that. We raised a fair old amount for a one-day event.

“Gary’s wife came down along with some of members of his old tank regiment, it was a poignant moment. I was quite overwhelmed by it all.”

A total of £2750 was raised from the event, which included putting and chipping competitions and a charity raffle. The money was split and donated to Dorset Cancer Care Foundation and Prostate Cancer UK.

Marie Robinson, a former colleague of Gary, who helped organise the raffle, said she was surprised by the amount of money they managed to raise.

She said: “I didn’t expect to raise anywhere near that much.

“It’s nice because you know it’s going to a good cause. At the end of the day it’s down to the businesses that helped without their prize donations we wouldn’t have had such a good event and thank you to Wareham Golf Club for letting us put the event on.”

James Beeby, Director of Fundraising at Prostate Cancer UK said he is grateful for the donation. He added: “I’d like to thank everyone involved in the golf day held at Wareham Golf Club in memory of Gary. Donating in memory of someone is an incredible way to remember them and make lasting memories. Thanks to their generosity, we can create a better future for men where more fathers, grandfathers and sons survive prostate cancer.”