Hi all,
I hope you are all well.
September has been another busy month and here are the latest totals
Total items of kit donated in September – 8,990
Total items of kit donated in 2024 – 66,901
Total items of kit donated since 1998 – 1,094,349
As you can see, we are now very close to reaching 1.1M items of donated kit, which I like as it is 100,000 items for every position on the pitch! That is more than a full Wembley Stadium for every position!
Courier Needed
Unfortunately our long standing courier partner has changed their business model and can now only collect for us in the London area. This is a big setback for KitAid as most of our donations are from all across the UK. The Regional Co-ordinators do a fantastic job in collecting for us in their areas but we use the couriers for the bigger donations of more than 10 full bin bags.
I have a meeting with the couriers on Thursday to see if they can recommend any other companies, If anyone knows of a suitable company please let me know.
Our biggest issue is that most courier companies only want to pick up loads that are already on pallets, whereas all of our collections are loose bags and boxes. I am currently turning down offers of kit, which is hard to do, but until we find a new courier we cannot collect as much. If you do have any contacts or suggestions please let me know.
Rickmansworth Road Run – Sunday 27 October.
This event is close to our heart as I co-founded it way back in 1984, again as a “one off” celebration run! This year will be the 40th Anniversary, how time flies, and KitAid is one of the chosen charities.
Matt T, our regional coordinator for Hitchin, is running for KitAid and he is looking for some other runners to join Team KitAid. If you, or any of your friends, are up to running 10 miles through the lovely Chiltern countryside, then please sign up and join Matt.
Entries are via www.rickyroadrun.co.uk
Matt has also set up a Just Giving page via https://www.justgiving.com/team/teamkitaid
Boxing Up Sessions
A successful boxing up session was held on Saturday at Hatfield with 155 boxes being packed and handed over to the charities who attended. Many thanks to all of the volunteers who were able to attend.
The next session is just around the corner, as our good friends, Everton Heritage Society, are holding one on the morning of Saturday 12 October at St Luke’s Church, Goodison, Liverpool. If you are within travelling distance of Liverpool or fancy a weekend break, you will receive a big Scouse welcome. We will also be recognising 10 years of support by Everton Heritage Society and Everton FC at the session.
KitAid medals
To supplement the Thank You certificates we have also produced a lovely KitAid medal, in the shape of a football shirt on a red/white ribbon. They are intended for people who go the extra mile, and especially for younger supporters. If you would like some for your area or know of anyone who you think deserves one, please let me know.
Diamonds in the Community – Airdrie
Last week our very good friends and charity partner won a Provost Award for their outstanding services to the community in North Lanarkshire. A very big congratulations from KitAid and we are very proud to have been alongside Dougy and the team from the start of their journey. We are sure to be visiting them again next year for the Glasgow Kiltwalk, so if you fancy a leisurely 14 mile stroll and a few shandies we can celebrate the award with them in 2025!
The Positive End Story!
I always like to finish these updates on a positive note and this is another lovely story. Antonia, our RC for the Bristol area received a very big donation of Bristol City FC shirts from two sons who were clearing their Fathers house. He was the BCFC kit manager during the 1980’s, When she brought them up to Hatfield, for a boxing up session, Adam, one of the volunteers, immediately recognised that the shirts were rare and from the 1980’s.
Although from time to time we do spot a rare shirt we cannot auction or sell them as the donor Club insists that they leave Europe. However, as these came from the family we thought we would ask and offer to share any profit with another charity of their choice. Once Antonia explained the work we do they said they would be happy to let KitAid have all of the proceeds.Adam then offered to act as the point of contact and he set up an Ebay sales point.
Some of the shirts sold for £340 each and so far Adam has raised £3,400 for KitAidWe have also been contacted by the Club historian at BCFC and we have donated some shirts for a new museum they are in the process of setting up.
Thank you to the family, Antonia and Adam, for helping raise much needed funds for KitAid.
I hope you all have a good October and if you do know of a courier company who might be able to help with collections, storage and delivery to Hemel Hempstead, please let me know.
Thanks for your support.
Derrick