Link Age Southwark launches ‘double your donation’ Big Give Christmas Challenge
As the weather turns wintry and the cost of living crisis hits home, local charity Link Age Southwark is aiming to raise £10,000 in just one week to support their work providing vital transport services to older people, people living with dementia and their carers. Link Age Southwark is taking part in the Big Give Christmas Challenge 2022 between 29 November and 6 December – and you can help!
Link Age Southwark’s volunteer drivers, escorted taxis for those living with dementia and their carers and the use of an accessible minibus for larger events, help over 250 local people leave their homes to attend a warm and safe space for social, exercise and activity groups organised by the charity. Many of them were hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic. Agnes regularly attends one of Link Age Southwark’s yoga groups. She says: “For somebody who’s always on the go the lockdown didn’t go too well with me. But I’m coming through it. Yes, I’m getting back to my usual self.”
In the year before the pandemic, Link Age Southwark provided 4,000 transport journeys that were free of charge for local people. As the difficult financial situation now bites, these journeys will become even more important. Link Age Southwark relies on donations to make them happen, as well as the other services they provide free of charge – these include a befriending scheme, hospital buddies for older people having elective surgery, DIY and light gardening to help with home maintenance and independent living, as well as one-to-one support with form filling and social isolation.
If Link Age Southwark can raise their target of £10,000 in online donations during the week of 29 November to 6 December, this money will be doubled thanks to a Big Give Christmas Challenge ‘pledge pot’ of £10,000 generously pledged by Patrons of the charity and the Lake House Charitable Foundation. So your donation will have twice the impact! The Big Give is the UK’s biggest online match funding campaign – here’s how you can get involved and help Link Age Southwark receive a total of£20,000 towards keeping local older people and their carers connected and able to get out and about in these difficult times:
- Visit Link Age Southwark’s Big Give Christmas Challenge campaign web page via www.linkagesouthwark.org to make a donation from midday on Tuesday 29 November (#GivingTuesday). The campaign will close at midday on Tuesday 6 December.
- If you are unable to donate at this time, you can still support Link Age Southwark’s Big Give Christmas Challenge by telling your friends, family and colleagues or sharing details on social media. The charity will be posting about the campaign on Twitter (@LASwark), Instagram (@linkagesouthwark) and Facebook: www.facebook.com/linkagesouthwark/
Sophie Wellings, Chief Executive of Link Age Southwark said: “Many of our groups are once again fully booked, and there’s been a really positive response to everything we’ve been doing to get our services back up and running in person, following the adaptations we had to make during the Covid-19 pandemic. It shows there’s a real need locally for what we do. Now, with the cost of living crisis and increase in energy costs causing huge concern, we are very keen to ensure that the people we work with continue to have access to warm and safe spaces and activities where they can mingle with their peers and our staff and volunteers. £20,000 would really help us to do that, and we’re so grateful to all those who support our Big Give Christmas Challenge campaign“.