KitAid Monthly Update – March 2024

March was a busy month for KitAid with some significant events and with some really big kit donations arriving. Here are the latest totals and the latest news stories.

Total items donated in March – 6,860
Total items donated in 2024 – 17,515
Total items donated since 1998 – 1,044,963

 

London Stadium Walk

A massive congratulations and thank you to Chris Turton and James Richings on completing the 3 day, 68 mile walk from the Emirates Stadium to the Bobby Moore statue in 148,000 steps!

They completed the challenge and so far have raised £1,552 for KitAid, which is an incredible achievement.

They even managed to get pitch side at most of the stadiums for a photo with the banner after explaining what the challenge was for. James “popped” a muscle in his foot on the final day and he had to hobble from Loftus Road to Wembley after being bandaged up by Chris. I met them at the Bobby Moore statue with a bottle of bubbly and a trophy along with Chris’s Dad and James’ wife and Mum.

They met all of the accommodation, travel and food costs themselves and their Just Giving page is still open for a few more weeks, See https://www.justgiving.com/page/chris-turton-james-andteam1705612763068

 

International Sports Convention – London

We attended this two day gathering at the Spurs stadium and were honoured to be the chosen charity for the event. A very big thank you to Nigel Fletcher and his team for making us so welcome.

It was a fantastic opportunity to network with many different sporting delegates and we were given our own stand to meet people and display pictures and material. We met a lot of interested parties from a multitude of different sports to share the KitAid story with. We have built new contacts and can now follow up with some to strengthen our relationship.

All in all it was a great experience which can only benefit our work and reputation.

 

Social Media sites

Ben W has been helping me with our social media output and his skills have certainly boosted the content since he got involved. He has created some wonderful videos and set up a new LinkedIn site and YouTube Channel.

He has created the following link to all of our sites, see https://linktr.ee/KitAid.net

The YouTube link is great as he has created a library of all of our film clips, many of which I suspect you will not have seen before. The LinkedIn site proved incredibly valuable at the ISC event as most people used it as their preferred communication tool.

Very many thanks Ben and if you currently do not follow us on X/Instagram/FB or LinkedIn please do as there are updates and film clips nearly every day.

 

FC United of Manchester collection

Ambassador Club, FC United of Manchester, will be hosting a kit collection for us at their match on Saturday 13 April.

Thanks to Regional Coordinator Peter M for arranging this and if you would like to join us on the day to help, please let me know. It is a great experience and the fans create a great experience regardless of how things are going for them on the pitch!

 

Fafali Golf visit

It is a few months away but in August there will be a visit from 5 young golfers from the Fafali Golf project in Accra, Ghana.

You may already know the story of how by chance they discovered that Afi Amazedo was a highly talented golfer, despite none of the children ever having played golf before. Afi will be competing in the World Junior Championship in Scotland in July and she will then be joined by 4 of her team in August when they visit Watford. We are looking to enter them into as many Junior Tournaments across Hertfordshire in August and so far Ian D has kindly arranged for them to take part in the Knebworth and Royston events. KitAid will also sponsor them for another.

We will be looking for help in driving them to and from events if you are in the area and free to help.

 

KitAid USA!

Although still in its very early stages we have started discussions on the possibility of setting up a satellite version of KitAid across the pond.

In the same way that KitAid Australia exists, it will run entirely independently but use the same/adapted model. We already have a partnership with the charity Sports Friend, who operate in the USA and the UK, and they have introduced us to MAI, who are keen to partner with us.

I think this proves how the KitAid model works as it is simple but effective.

 

Hatfield Boxing Up

We are hoping to hold another boxing up session in late April once the storeroom fills up. It is currently half full and we are looking to move some kit from the containers in Hemel Hempstead to clear space there and to fill up the room. If you know anyone who has a van we can use and/or, you are free to help in the next couple of weeks, please let me know.

 

I think that is everything, other than thanking you all for your support of KitAid and wishing you a wonderful April.

Many thanks
Derrick

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KitAid Monthly Update – February 2024

I hope you are all well and enjoying this (rainy!) extra day of 2024.

Here are the latest totals as of today.

Total items sent out in February – 3,710
Total items sent out in 2024 – 10,655
Total items sent out since 1998 – 1,038,103

 

Grassroots Magazine

We have received tremendous coverage in the above online magazine which focuses on all things non league and grassroots football across Essex.
Our relationship came about thanks to Regional Co-ordinator Barrie N contacting them at the start of his “25 for 25” Challenge when he visited 25 Clubs across Essex. Since then we have appeared in 13 issues, often with 3 or 4 page articles as well as appearing on front covers. Thanks to Barrie for writing articles and for keeping the relationship strong.
Here is a link to the last issue, which as you can see includes Sir Mo at our last Hatfield boxing up session.
https://issuu.com/grassrootsmagonline/docs/grass_roots_feb_24

 

Regional HUB’s

Although KitAid works predominantly from our storage units in Hemel Hempstead and Hatfield, we are very fortunate to have two other sites in Merseyside and Scotland.
Thanks to our close links with Everton Heritage Society in Liverpool and Diamonds in the Community in Airdrie kit is stored and also handed over to charities from these sites.
A big thank you to Richie and Paul in Liverpool and to Dougie and Gordon in Scotland for making this happen.
It is also incredibly helpful for the charities who collect kit from these sites as otherwise they would have to travel hundreds of miles to Hertfordshire.

 

London Football Ground Sponsored Walk

In a few weeks time, on March 20, 21 and 22, Chris T our Aylesbury RC, and a couple of friends, will be walking to every EFL/PL ground in London, in support of KitAid. Over all 3 days they will walk 67 miles starting from Arsenal on Wednesday morning and eventually finishing on Friday afternoon at the Bobby Moore statue at Wembley.

This is an incredibly tough task, made even more arduous by having to drop down to Sutton United, adding on extra miles. Unfortunately they couldn’t find a sponsor to cover their costs and are meeting accommodation, travel and food expenses themselves. To save money they are staying in shared Air B&B rooms, and from a picture I saw, even an Estate Agent would struggle to write a glowing reference for a room with 3 bunk beds and not enough space to swing a cat!

We appreciate times are tough for everyone, but if you are able to sponsor them I know they would appreciate it. It will make those miles to Sutton more bearable, knowing they will most likely be relegated to non-league if they had left the walk until June!! Here is a link to their Just Giving page
https://www.justgiving.com/page/chris-turton-james-andteam1705612763068

 

FOMO FC – Promoted to the Malawi Super League

They finally did it, despite the original referee being bribed in favour of the opposition, which fortunately was discovered before the match.

It is an incredible achievement as the team is mostly made up of orphans supported by our very good friends FOMO Malawi. The town of Mulanje has never had a Super League side and following their Play Off victory, there were celebrations for many days. The Super League season starts on 1 April and it will be very tough for the guys both on and off the pitch.

Congratulations to Mary Woodworth, who has always been the driving force in giving young people in Mulanje sporting opportunities. We are proud to have supported Mary with kit donations and some project sponsorship over many years. We are looking into a project to help them raise funds as they will have additional costs playing at the top level.

 

Social Media sites

Some of you will be aware that we now have a LinkedIn site which is growing in followers. Thanks to Ben W who manages this for us, with regular updates. Ben also arranged for me to be interviewed on the Sports Friends podcast #AlreadyWon

If you are a regular LinkedIn user please follow us and share our stories to spread the word.

Thanks to all of our Regional Co-ordinators and volunteers who do a fantastic job in collecting and storing kit for us. This is the engine room which keeps KitAid running like a well oiled Formula 1 machine. We are building up stock for the next kit sorting session at Hatfield which will hopefully be in early April.

 

Have a good March and thank you for your support.

Derrick

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Sir Mo Farah joins Boxing Up session

KitAid was honoured by the presence of Sir Mo Farah at the Hatfield Boxing Up session on Saturday 27 January.

Sir Mo chatted to every volunteer, signed autographs, recorded voice messages and helped load boxes into the charity vans. Everyone was excited to meet him and said afterwards what a lovely down to earth and humble guy he is.

85 boxes of kit were handed over to Mo for him to distribute in Hargeisa, Somaliland at the end of March. He will be opening a sports centre and arranging football tournaments while he is there.

A fantastic morning and an experience we will always remember.

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KitAid Monthly Update – January 2024

I hope you are all well and settled into 2024.

January has been a very special month for KitAid with a memorable first boxing up session. Here are the highlights and the very latest despatch totals

Total items of kit donated in January – 6,945
Total items of kit donated since 1998 – 1,034,393

 

Boxing Up – Sir Mo Farah

Many of you were at the session on Saturday morning for what was the most memorable and wonderful boxing up in our history. Sir Mo was fantastic, he took time to chat to everyone, signed everything, posed for loads of photos and recorded voice messages with incredible enthusiasm. We couldn’t have asked for more and he even got involved in loading all of the vans.

When I spoke to him before the session he made it clear that he wants to give back now that he finally has time. A really humble and honorable man in every sense.

He received 85 boxes of kit and they will be used in Hargeisa, Somaliland at the end of March when he opens a new sports complex there. He said he didn’t just want to turn up, cut a ribbon and pose for a few photos. He is going to organise some tournaments to involve the local community.

A wonderful experience and the beauty of KitAid, we never know what the next email, message or call might bring!

 

Thank You certificates

Hopefully all of the regional coordinators reading this update have received the new 2024 certificates to hand out to kit donors. If you haven’t, could you please let me know.

Many thanks to Carole for designing the certificate and for arranging the printing, while she is away in New Zealand. The first batch was posted out on 5 January, which must be a new record.

 

London Football Ground Sponsored Walk – 20/21/22 March

This is a very unique challenge and many thanks to Chris, our Regional Coordinator for Aylesbury, for setting up the event.

I do think “challenge” is the right description as it is a 3 day walk, covering every EFL ground in London, starting at Arsenal on 20 March and finishing at Wembley Stadium a couple of days later. Chris will be joined by friends, including James, who is the Wycombe Wanderers correspondent for the Bucks Free Press, and a supporter of KitAid.

As the walk involves overnight stays Chris is looking to try and get some external sponsorship. If anyone knows of a company who might like to put their name to the event please let me know.

A Just Giving page has been created and Chris is hoping to raise £1,000 for KitAid, see https://www.justgiving.com/page/chris-turton-james-andteam1705612763068

If you would like to join Chris, it doesn’t have to be for the whole event, even a leisurely 3 mile wander from Chelsea to Fulham, will be appreciated. I will arrange a welcome home and congratulations party for their final stretch from Brentford to Wembley Stadium on 22 March.

 

Bill Antonio

This is a lovely story and one to make KitAid proud.

We have a picture of a teenage Bill wearing a Watford FC training top in Harare, Zimbabwe. A couple of weeks ago, Bill came on as a late substitute for Mechelen and scored the winning goal against KA Gent in the Belgian A League. This is hopefully the start of a long career for Bill and who knows, he could be wearing a Watford training shirt every day in the future!

 

International Sports Convention – 20/21 March

As previously mentioned, KitAid is the chosen charity partner for this prestigious convention at White Hart Lane.

ISC agreed to sponsor a couple of our projects and asked for some proposals, which we supplied. They have agreed to sponsor a Women and Girls Football project in Malawi, which will be overseen by our good friends FOMO Malawi. This will enable a womens team to enter the Southern Malawi Football League for the very first time. They have also agreed to sponsor the Chimpanzee Protection Tournament in Uganda later this year.

 

Well I never……!

Recently Johnny (Jefferson), our Regional Coordinator for Durham gave a KitAid presentation to a Scout Group in Whitley Bay.

Johnny’s son Jed went with him and he is currently in the TV series “Jamie Johnson FC”. The boys in the scout group wanted to meet him! He was also in the series “Dumping Ground”. I then found out that Dad Johnny was in the famous TV series “Byker Grove” along with Ant and Dec, and he played the part of Fraser Campbell!

Any other claims to fame from other Regional Coordinators gratefully received!!

 

A great start to 2024 and thanks very much to everyone for your support and time in keeping the KitAid journey on rack.

Many thanks
Derrick

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KitAid – 25th Anniversary Review

I hope you are all well and you all had a lovely Christmas break.

As we are fast approaching the end of 2023, our special year, I thought it would be appropriate to round it off with a summary of what we all achieved.

Total items of kit donated at start of 2023 – 933,897
Total items of kit donated at end of 2023 – 1,027,448
Total items of kit donated in 2023 – 93,551

In the January monthly update I set out four targets that I hoped KitAid could achieve by the end of December, as follows:-

  1. To reach One Million items of donated kit during the 25th Anniversary year.
  2. To celebrate our 25th Anniversary year with a party event.
  3. For KitAid to win an award in recognition of everyone’s efforts.
  4. To agree on a sustainable operating model beyond our 25th year.

Well we can certainly tick the boxes for the items 1 to 3 and number 4 still needs more discussion before coming to an agreement.

I think we can congratulate ourselves on meeting the first 3 targets and remember, we are just a small volunteer run charity operating on goodwill with a very small income.

 

Highlights of 2023

I have made a quick list and would be interested to hear from you if you have any others.

  • Design of a special 25th Anniversary logo
  • Production of a 25th Anniversary calendar
  • 25th Anniversary badge and polo shirts.
  • 25th Anniversary coin (for celebration evening attendees)
  • 25th Anniversary 20 page brochure.

 

Events

  • Attendance as an invited charity to the Liverpool FC Foundation Legends match at Anfield with a half time pitch side presentation of a special “25” shirt.
  • KitAid Supporters Cup presentation to Leverstock Green FC.
  • “25 for 25” Fundraising Challenge. Congratulations to Antonia, Karen, Peter, Matt, Barrie and Ben who between them raised £2,500 from their various Challenges.
  • 25th Anniversary Celebration evening at Watford FC. A memorable evening for 130 KitAid supporters from all over the UK which raised £4,000.
  • Gareth Southgate recognising our One Million milestone with the presentation of a special 1 Million England shirt.
  • Kit collection at Cambridge United FC.
  • Presentation of a Special Recognition Award by Hertfordshire FA.
  • Recognition by The FA in the Royal Box at Wembley prior to the England v Malta match.
  • A thank you from Sir Mo Farah for our support of projects in Somalia and Somaliland.
  • Self funded visits to our charity partners Ballysillan YFC in Belfast and to Diamonds in the Community in Airdrie.
  • KitAid sponsorship of the Belfast Football Camp, the FOMO Malawi Football/Netball Bonanza and the Bulindi Chimpanzee Protection Tournament amounting to £2,500 in total.

Looking ahead to 2024

  • First boxing up session with attendance from a very special guest. (27 Jan, Hatfield)
  • Attendance at the International Sports Convention event in London as their chosen charity partner. (20/21 March)
  • Kit collection at FC United of Manchester (13 April).

In addition to all of the above, we also finally changed our bank provider and have entered into the 21st Century with e-banking. This has probably been the most trying activity of all!! Thanks to Mark and Sean for their support.

All that remains is to say a massive thank you to everyone reading this update for your support of KitAid and to wish you a very happy, healthy and fulfilling 2024.

To finish on, my favourite quotes received following kit donations.

 

“Hear it from me. I am in Norton, Zimbabwe. Keep up the good work. You are not serving soccer. You are saving it.”
Norton Times Magazine, Zimbabwe.

 

“You are not only giving kits, you are giving hope, making a difference and motivating the next generation. We love and cherish what you do.”
Anthiny Iwere, Gravity Solutions Charity.

 

Thank You

Derrick

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KitAid Monthly Update – November 2023

I hope you are all well and looking forward to the festive weeks ahead.

November was another busy month with a full boxing up session at Hatfield and regular donations from the containers. The new totals are as follows.

 

Total items of kit donated in November – 10,426
Total items of kit donated in 2023 – 92,816
Total items of kit donated since 1998 – 1,026,468

 

I have decided to take a break from handing over kit from the containers in December as I have hurt my hip/back and lifting boxes aggravates it. Hopefully a rest will sort things out and it will give us some time to build up stock again ready for January and the new year. It is also freezing at the containers at this time of the year!!

 

£500 donation

Many thanks to the Paradigm Norton Trust from Bristol for a generous donation of £500. This came about as Regional Coordination Antonia applied to the Trust on our behalf. It then involved a short article being written about our work and how we would use any funds donated, for their committee to consider.

Thanks to Antonia for applying on our behalf and if anyone else knows of any Trusts who make charitable grants, please let me know.

 

Leverstock Green FC – Ambassador Club

Last Saturday Leverstock Green FC, from the Spartan South Midlands Premier League officially became the ninth Club/Trust to become a member of this exclusive club.

They have been very supportive with kit donations for a number of years and have also promoted our work with regular articles in their match day programme and displayed our banner pitch side, free of charge.

The Ambassador Club is for Step 3,4 & 5 non league clubs along with some Trusts and Societies.
The full list of Ambassador Clubs is as follows:
Chesham United FC, FC United of Manchester, Witton Albion FC, Stenhousemuir FC, Marine AFC, Everton in the Community, Diamonds in the Community, Hibernian in the Community and now, Leverstock Green FC.

 

Chelmsford City FC Collection

Many thanks to Chelmsford City FC who recently hosted a kit collection at their home game against Maidstone United.

Thanks to Barrie N for arranging this and for manning a stall before the match. This came about following Barrie’s successful “25for25” Challenge where he met the Club officials and built a relationship and understanding about our work.

 

2023 Christmas Card/2024 Thank You Certificate

Please find attached this year’s Christmas Card. Please send it on to any of your regular supporters.

The 2024 Thank You Certificate is currently with Carole to design and should be available as a printed version by mid to late January. In the meantime please continue to use the current certificate.

A very big thank you to Carole Parsons who does all of our design work free of charge and this year has been extremely busy with the 25th Anniversary brochure as well as the special logo, badges and other items. Carole retired but still does our work and even takes out time from visits to New Zealand to complete our work.

 

KitAid FC U14/U16’s

Congratulations to all of the boys from both teams, who last weekend played in the District Finals. The U14’s drew 1-1 but unfortunately lost on penalties and the U16’s won their match 4-0. They will now go on to represent the Mulanje District in the Regional tournament to decide which team becomes the champions of Malawi.

 

Sir Mo Farah

At the Hatfield Boxing Up session last week we were briefly joined by Sir Mo when he joined the session by video call and took us by surprise! He wanted to thank everyone for our hard work and for supporting projects in his homeland of Somalia. This obviously applies to everyone who is involved with KitAid, not just those at the boxing up session, so thank you to everyone from the legend, Sir Mo Farah.

 

I will send out an end of year update but if I don’t speak to you before, have a wonderful Christmas and thank you very much for making our 25th Anniversary year a special one. We couldn’t have done it without your support.

Happy Christmas.

Derrick

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Welcome to the Ambassador Club, Leverstock Green FC

Congratulations to Leverstock Green FC. Who are the latest Club to be added to the KitAid Ambassador Club.

They are the first team from Step 5 and from the (SSML) Spartan South Midlands League to be enrolled as an Ambassador Club.

Emma and Tony Smart from the Committee have been long term supporters of KitAid and they have donated kit, banner space in support of our work.

Welcome to the Ambassador Club

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KitAid Monthly Update – October 2023

After the milestone month of September it was back to reality again, but October was another successful month. Here are the new totals and the highlights:

Total items of kit donated = 7,910
Total items of kit donated in 2023 = 82,390
Total items of kit donated since 1998 = 1,016,042

 

Hertfordshire FA Award

At the Hatfield boxing up session on 7 October we were delighted and surprised to be presented with a Special Recognition Award as part of the 2023 County Grassroots Football Awards. Many thanks to Herts FA CEO Karl Lingham and to Communications Manager Stuart Mugford for including KitAid in this year’s awards .

It is great for KitAid to receive recognition for all of the hard work carried out by everyone. I can now retire my soapbox and update our trophy cabinet!!

 

Congratulations to Ben (and Sandeep)

Many congratulations to both Ben and Sandeep on the birth of their first baby, Caleb Benjamin Wildman, who arrived on the 5th October. Many of you will know Ben who is the Regional Coordinator for North Kent and South London, as well as a regular boxing up attendee.
Ben is also managing our Linkedin and YouTube posts in between bottle feeds and catching up on sleep!
Good luck Ben and we look forward to seeing Caleb joining you at Hatfield in a few years time.

 

FOMO Malawi Football & Netball Bonanza

Following the 25th Anniversary Celebration we were very fortunate to receive some donations from supporters. Many thanks to the Taylor Family, Tony Smart and to Hertfordshire FA.

We have decided to pool the donations, holding some amount back to meet running costs, but with the majority used to sponsor the Bonanza. We have sponsored this before and some of us have witnessed the wonderful event, which this year will be held between Christmas and New Year.

More than 1,000 children from the 14 Orphan Support Centres in Mulanje will take part in both football and netball tournaments. It is a wonderful event which the children really look forward to, as they are given treats, special food and prizes. There will be regular updates on our sites each day so do look out for the film clips.

Our sponsorship of the Bonanza also helps FOMO as they are struggling to cope with the increased food prices as well as more children coming to the Centres as they are so hungry. This is largely a result of the cyclone which devastated crops in the south of Malawi and pushed up food prices.

 

25 for 25 Challenge

A very big thank you to the six supporters who have taken on a challenge and between themselves, have so far raised £2,200.

We still have two months to go as the Challenge was intended to run across the whole of our 25th Anniversary year.

Can we reach our target of raising £2,500, either with another couple of participants or by sponsoring Karen Austin, who is still completing her challenge of running 25 x 5km runs. Karen has so far completed 22 runs and her final run will be in Auckland, New Zealand on Christmas Eve.

If you are able to sponsor Karen, here is a link to her Just Giving page
https://trk.justgiving.com/f/a/TJk-tTZMiMlFhr1oRNrVwQ~~/AAME8QA~/RgRmRjbFP0T2aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuanVzdGdpdmluZy5jb20vcGFnZS9rLWF1c3Rpbi0xNjg0MjU0NTE3NjE1P3V0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj1sY19mcnBfc2hhcmVfdHJhbnNhY3Rpb25fdHJhbnNhY3Rpb25hbF8tLV9wYWdlX2xhdW5jaGVkXy0tX2NhbXBhaWduJnV0bV9jb250ZW50PTY2ZTI0YTAwLWJhYTctNDM5Ni1hYzhiLTdlYTcwMmI2NzkwNCZ1dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9zb3VyY2U9cG9zdG9mZmljZSZ1dG1fdGVybT0xNjg0MjU1MTcxOTE2VwNzcGNCCmRixbFjZK5rKiNSFGthcmVuYXVzdGluMjZAbWUuY29tWAQAAAAD

 

KitAid Promotional Flyers

As we have now reached the One Million milestone I have started to update promotional material and the first is the A5 Flyer. Next week I will receive 2,000 copies and if you would like some please let me know. Next on the list is the 2024 Thank You certificate and I am also working with Carole on getting some quotes to print 1,000 copies of an updated version of the 25th Anniversary brochure.

I am hoping to share an exciting announcement about a special fundraising walk soon, which should be a great event for those who enjoy visiting football grounds in the London area!

 

I think that is all of the news for October and as ever, many thanks for all of your support. KitAid couldn’t exist without it.

Best wishes
Derrick

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2024 International Sports Convention partner charity

KitAid is immensely proud to have been chosen as the partner charity for the 2024 International Sports Convention, which will be held at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium next March.
Further details will follow in due course.

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Special Recognition Award by Hertfordshire FA

KitAid is delighted to have been awarded a Special Recognition Award by Hertfordshire FA in recognition of 25 Years of Transforming Lives Around the World through the Power of Football

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