The appeal, ‘Make Dreams a Reality this Christmas’, aims to raise money to support people living in extreme poverty around the world and will run until 31^st December 2023.

“I will always be grateful to those who saw and helped me reach my potential. Everyone should have the opportunity to make their dreams a reality – and as a mother, when I hear about parents whose dreams are to feed their children or keep their families safe, I feel compelled to act. That’s why I’m delighted to support the Make Dreams a Reality appeal this Christmas,” said Leah.

Chris Thompson, Tearfund’s Director in Northern Ireland, added: ‘Recently, the threats of climate, conflict and the cost-of-living crisis have left already vulnerable people fighting to survive. We see this across the countries in which we work.

“That’s why we are so grateful to SPAR, EUROSPAR, ViVO and ViVOXTRA staff and shoppers for their support: we know this has, and will continue to make, a tangible difference in the lives of many of the most vulnerable across the globe.”

POSITIVE IMPACT

Marking the 11th partnership appeal in aid of Tearfund’s work, the funds raised over the years have positively impacted up to 493,487 individuals living in extreme poverty around the world.

Bronagh Luke from SPAR NI added: “Understanding exactly how the money raised over the years has helped those receiving training and resources from Tearfund is a powerful testament to just how important this annual appeal is.

“I have seen first-hand how funds from our appeals have helped families in Uganda and Rwanda, helping them rebuild their lives post-conflict and in the face of some of the most extreme conditions. I’d like to thank our shoppers in advance for supporting our appeal as we know everyone is feeling the effects of the cost-of-living crisis, so every penny is so gratefully received.”

Shoppers can be assured that every £1 raised in-store will be matched by the retailers, up to an amount of £300,000.

‘Make Dreams a Reality this Christmas’ is now live, with donation boxes in SPAR, EUROSPAR, ViVO and ViVOXTRA stores throughout Northern Ireland, running until 31 December 2023.Shoppers can also donate online and find out more via tearfund.org/dreams

The post NI fighter Leah McCourt wants to make dreams a reality this Christmas first appeared on Neighbourhood Retailer.

In total, £517,605 was raised thanks to shopper donations which were matched by SPAR, EUROSPAR and ViVO, and is already helping families prepare for when disaster strikes, like Sumi Begum and her family who live in the Bay of Bengal.

Sumi lives with her husband and two young sons in a village in Bangladesh, where their small, wood-frame house sat on a low-lying mudflat alongside the powerful Andharmanik River. Their family home has been regularly flooded by heavy rain and tidal swells caused by increasing cyclonic activity in the Bay, which has caused significant trauma to the young family for fear their house would be swept away, as Sumi watched the plinth their house was built on get gradually washed away.

Now, alongside Tearfund’s partner in Bangladesh, the family have had a new protective foundation built from reinforced concrete, which has helped save the family’s lives and livelihoods.

Bronagh Luke, Head of Corporate Marketing says you cannot put a value on the positive impact those funds raised have on families like Sumi’s.

“We are so grateful to our generous shoppers and motivated retailers who put so much into the Tearfund appeal at the end of 2021. This is a new record of fundraising for our annual Tearfund appeal, which enables the charity to channel funds into those in most need through their partners who are helping build better lives around the world,” she says.

“Hearing Sumi’s story and how our donations have helped her sleep at night thanks to the reinforced foundation her house now sits on, should hit home with all of us and shows us just how important it is to continue to help our neighbours around the world.”

The money was raised during the ‘A Gift for your Neighbour’ campaign which ran throughout November and December, in a response to help push vital funds towards the communities living in poverty around the world and feeling the acute effects of Covid, conflict and climate change.

Glen Mitchell, NI Director at Tearfund added: “We are thrilled by the record-breaking generosity shown by shoppers and retailers at SPAR, EUROSPAR and ViVO to the ‘A Gift for your Neighbour’ appeal. We are incredibly grateful for our ongoing partnership with SPAR, EUROSPAR and ViVO. It enables Tearfund and our partners to continue to bring life-saving solutions to people living in poverty around the world, helping families like Sumi’s to be safe and ready for when disaster strikes.”

Pic caption: Chris Thompson from Tearfund NI joins Bronagh Luke, Head of Corporate Marketing at Henderson Group to celebrate SPAR, EUROSPAR and ViVO shoppers helping to raise over £517,000 for Tearfund’s ‘A Gift for Your Neighbour’ campaign.

The post Seasonal appeal sets new record levels of fundraising thanks to local Henderson shoppers   first appeared on Neighbourhood Retailer.

As world leaders meet at the COP26 Summit in Glasgow, Tearfund has launched its ‘A Gift for your Neighbour’ campaign, partnering with SPAR, EUROSPAR and ViVO stores in Northern Ireland to help push vital funds towards the communities living in poverty around the world, and feeling the effects of Covid, conflict and climate change.

SPAR, EUROSPAR and ViVO will match donations made in-store or online, up to £200,000 from 01 November until 31 December 2021.

Bronagh Luke, Head of Corporate Marketing at Henderson Group met with Tearfund’s Northern Ireland Director, Glen Mitchell,to discuss how important the annual partnership is to communities around the world, especially in the face of various global emergencies.

“It could be easy to forget the different ways that the climate crisis impacts different communities around the world – however campaigns like this help us further understand the importance of reaching across the world and helping our global neighbours,” Bronagh said.

“Our shoppers have always been incredibly generous during our festive campaigns, and matching their donations will help reach communities who are facing these very real effects of global warming even further.”

Climate crisis

The appeal aims to help support communities like those on the coast of the Bay of Bengal, where families like Juliet’s are already living in poverty, and now the climate crisis is making things even worse for them.

Juliet’s family relies mostly on fishing and on growing crops like rice to survive, but an ever-increasing number of floods and extreme cyclones makes life very dangerous and it’s difficult to keep finding money to rebuild houses and replace belongings that are washed away.

Glen Mitchell, NI Director at Tearfund added; “We are so grateful to the generous staff and shoppers of SPAR, EUROSPAR, ViVO and ViVOXTRA who, again this year, are helping some of the people who live in greatest need around the world. The money we raise this year through ‘A Gift for Your Neighbour’ will go towards helping people like Juliet around the world.

“Tearfund’s partner in the Bay of Bengal has been able to help Juliet’s community find ways to stay safe when flooding comes, and also come up with different ways to earn more income to help them lift themselves out of poverty. Thank you for being a part of helping people like Juliet and her family!”

A Gift for Your Neighbour is now live, with donation boxes in SPAR, EUROSPAR, ViVO and ViVOXTRA stores throughout Northern Ireland, running until 31 December 2021.

Shoppers can also donate online and find out more via tearfund.org/SPAR.

Picture caption: Tearfund NI Director, Glen Mitchell and Head of Corporate Marketing at Henderson Group, Bronagh Luke, launch their Christmas campaign for 2021 – A Gift for your Neighbour.

The post Tearfund teams up with Henderson Group to fundraise for global poverty first appeared on Neighbourhood Retailer.