Local stars shine a light on Northern Ireland Hospice’s Emergency Appeal

Northern Ireland’s leading personalities in the sports, music and comedy industries have all given their support to the ‘Now More than Ever’ Appeal and are asking others to do the same.
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Northern Ireland Hospice Ambassadors, Brendan Rodgers, Simone Magill, Carl Frampton as well as comedians, Paddy Raff, Tim McGarry, and singers, Brian Kennedy and Daniel O’Donnell are just some of the stars weighing in behind the campaign by making a short video appeal.

The appeal was launched in response to the COVID-19 outbreak which has already had a devastating impact on the charity’s income, with local and international fundraising events postponed and all the Hospice Shops across the province now closed.

Comedian, Paddy Raff, who has raised over £7k from his social media video for the Hospice, said:

‘The impact of COVID-19 has been challenging for us all, that’s why I was delighted to get on board to help promote the Northern Ireland Hospice Emergency Appeal, to help raise some money to enable them to continue to offer their specialist palliative care services to local people who need it most.

“At the minute, my Nigel sketch has raised £7,576 for Northern Ireland Hospice which is amazing. Who would have known that Nigel from BT9 would raise such an incredible amount?! If you haven’t already, please donate what you can to the Hospice and help them during this incredibly difficult time”.

Mary McCall, Director at Northern Ireland Hospice, added: “The COVID-19 pandemic has been difficult for everyone and we’ve already seen a dramatic decline in our normal fundraising activities. Income that we rely on from our major fundraising events and Hospice shops have been lost. This reduction in our necessary income will have a serious impact on our ability to provide the clinical care and compassion our community needs. We launched our Emergency Appeal in an effort to raise vital funds to ensure that we can continue to deliver our care.

“We are delighted that our ambassadors and local stars have come on board to support our appeal. The response from our community has been overwhelming and we’re grateful that these celebrities have taken the time to show their support for our team and the invaluable work of the Northern Ireland Hospice.

“These are worrying times for many people financially, so we appreciate everyone who has donated to the appeal and shared our videos and messages. Every gesture helps and raises awareness of our need for income at this time.

“Every donation, no matter how small, will enable us to continue to care for local people and their families during this challenging time and beyond, every penny raised comes directly to the Northern Ireland Hospice. We are immensely proud of our frontline clinical staff who continue to care through these difficult times and inspired by the awesome generosity of local people who are supporting the charity.”

To donate to the appeal, visit: www.nihospice.org/emergencyappeal