'Think outside the box!': Northampton General Hospital charity urges fundraisers to go virtual as events cancelled

The hospital is asking their fundraisers to think differently this year to help them raise vital cash for the wellbeing of staff and patients
By Carly Roberts
Published 17th Sep 2020, 14:59 BST
Updated 17th Sep 2020, 15:02 BST
Chantelle Esposito should have been tying the knot to her fiance but instead she celebrated raising £815 for NGH by using her wedding props as part of her effort to race the distance of two London Marathons for charity.Chantelle Esposito should have been tying the knot to her fiance but instead she celebrated raising £815 for NGH by using her wedding props as part of her effort to race the distance of two London Marathons for charity.
Chantelle Esposito should have been tying the knot to her fiance but instead she celebrated raising £815 for NGH by using her wedding props as part of her effort to race the distance of two London Marathons for charity.

Northampton General Hospital's charity is facing the loss of future income this year as iconic races as big events like the London Marathon are being rescheduled.

During the early stages of lockdown, £109,000 was raised for Northamptonshire Health Charity in response to COVID-19 outbreak, which was more than double the amount of donations they saw across the same period last year.

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Chantelle the would-be-bride ran two marathons in her wedding tutu to help raise £815 for NGH while brothers Jack and Harry cycled 300km between them in 30 days to contribute to the effort.

“We’ve been blown away by the many diverse and innovative ways people have raised funds for us throughout the recent lockdown,” said Alison McCulloch, head of fundraising for the charity.

“There are so many ways you can still take part and help us to continue supporting our NHS heroes and the patients they treat.”

The charity's hospital has put a call out for more people like Chantelle, Jack and Harry to complete virtual fundraising challenges at home - whether it be 'climbing Mount Everest in two weeks, or walk in the shoes of an NHS worker as they walk, on average, 13,500 steps per shift.

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Readers could even celebrate their birthdays by taking on a challenge like Trystan Barnett, who marked his 18th by running a full marathon throughout Northampton, complete with a police escort.

Alison added: "It would be fantastic to see you get involved with some virtual fundraising for Northamptonshire Health Charity to help us keep making big differences to our local NHS by enhancing patient experience and supporting the wellbeing of staff, at this testing time.

"There are a range of different types of challenge running monthly via the Ultra Challenge website and they’ll be offering virtual events alongside their 2021 programme.

"They now offer a variety of virtual fundraising challenges, for example iconic events like the London and Brighton marathons and the Great North Run have all adapted their events for you to get involved virtually.

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"There is the opportunity to register for free to take part in some events offered and you get chance to fundraise for the charity of your choice.

"If you’d like to get involved with a somewhat less active challenge, there are plenty of ways to do this too. Why not run a virtual quiz night via Zoom, hold a socially-distanced board game night or an online sale or auction with your friends? The ideas are endless."

To research more into fundraising opportunities for Northamptonshire Health Charity, click here. Or contact them on 01604 626 927 or [email protected] for more information.

Related topics:Northamptonshire Health CharityNHS

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