In March of this year I received a lovely email from a lady called Natalie, she told me that she was part of a local fundraising team consisting of herself, her husband, Simon, and two friends, Tom and Martin. Together they were in the process of arranging a charity football match for the third year running. The match is named in honour of a local young girl, Olivia, who sadly passed away in 2021.
Natalie said they would like to raise funds for Milly’s Smiles this year, as we have recently supported their friends son Thomas, when he was transferred to The Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital in April last year, aged 6, following a diagnosis of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. It was on Ward 86 that Thomas received his Milly’s Smiles bag, which his parents say was a total god send.
The day of the Charity Football Match was beautiful, so many people came together to make the day a huge success. There was so much going on throughout the day and Thomas and his sister Lucy made £250 from selling bracelets that they had be making specially with their friends.
The total amount of money raised from the event was a huge £8707.24! Way beyond anything that we ever expected, and pure testament to the amount of hard work put in by everyone involved.
Alongside all the money raised, the team have also got a collection of over 400 toiletry items for us. We are really looking forward to meeting up with them later in the month to be able to thank them in person for all their support.
A special mention goes out to Olivia and her brave parents, there are never any words that can ease the pain associated with the loss of a child. Bravery is measured in many ways, but for me, parents who continue to live their lives without their precious child are amongst the bravest people to walk the earth. When that is combined with making a difference to other people in memory of their child, then that becomes something very special indeed.
