THOUSANDS of children will benefit from a £92,000 donation to reduce their stress while in hospital, thanks to kind-hearted colleagues at Tesco stores across Birmingham.
Stores in the city and across the Birmingham area started raising funds last summer, with the aim of helping youngsters at Birmingham Children’s Hospital.
The grand total has now been presented to the hospital, and to show their appreciation the hospital’s charity has recognised Tesco as one of their 100 Heroes for 2023, celebrating the retailers’ charitable efforts.
Miranda Williams, head of public fundraising at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “We are simply blown away by the phenomenal amount raised by Tesco, its incredible staff and generous customers.
“It will help improve the experience of our young patients greatly.
“The money raised will support our Virtual Reality (VR) Appeal, helping to purchase VR headsets which can transport our young patients into a lifelike, three-dimensional world where they can – for a short period of time – forget about why they are in hospital and the medical procedure they’re about to receive. We’re so grateful to all the Tesco stores across Birmingham.”
Community Champions throughout the Birmingham area helped lead the fundraising efforts in Tesco’s larger stores.
Kevin Twynholm, a Tesco store manager said: “It became very evident that we had chosen the right charity, as stories quickly began surfacing of just how many of our colleagues had used the hospitals services or knew someone that was supported by the care available.
“Our goal was to raise funds for the hospital’s VR project but we never thought we’d raise so much money, which goes to show what people can do when they put their minds to it.
“Each store and colleague involved has done something truly amazing which will make a very big difference to so many at the hospital.”
The £92,000 raised will go towards supporting distraction therapy and play for children in the hospital who are undergoing procedures.
Visit: bch.org.uk for more information.
