500th donation! £250,000 donated! Thank YOU!
Good morning to our wonderful community.
Today is a very special day. Today, we celebrate the 500th birthday of 500 Reasons! And what a journey it has been.
Because of each and every one of you, this community has now given an astonishing £250,000 to support, care for and help others when they have needed it most.
£250,000.
That figure is incredible. But behind that number are hundreds of real people, real families, real circumstances and moments when someone needed to know that they were not alone.
And that is what makes us most proud.
We feel incredibly privileged to be your Admin Team. We never take for granted the trust you place in us when you put forward your nominations, often sharing deeply personal and heartbreaking circumstances with us.
This week two nominations came to us that we felt needed urgent help. Both were incredibly difficult, and both felt like a priority. We were faced with a decision: how could we help both people when the need was so great?
As an Admin Team, we decided that we would personally contribute the additional money needed so that both nominations could receive the help they so urgently needed. Because sometimes, waiting isn't an option.
The two nominations below are deeply upsetting.
But a reminder that in a world where there can be so much pain, uncertainty and hardship, there is a community of 500 people who continue to show up for others.
You don't just give money.
You give someone breathing space when everything feels overwhelming.
You give someone a little hope when they are struggling to see any.
You remind someone that they matter.
And perhaps most importantly, you show people that they are not alone.
£250,000 given. Hundreds of lives touched. And one community that continues to prove that people really do care.
So today, on our 500th birthday, we want to say thank you.
Thank you for every nomination.
Thank you for every donation.
Thank you for every kind word.
Thank you for trusting us.
And thank you for being the kind of community that doesn't simply say we care — but shows it.
Here are the nominations from our lovely members, Tim and Michelle.
With all our love and gratitude,
The Admin Team
Tim's nomination:
Becks and team recently ran a Friday night pop up at Redcatch Community Garden in Knowle and a lovely lady “Salha” cooked amazing food for the local community.
We have heard this week that her son was involved in a horrific attack. Since the attack, the family have reported further incidents of threats, harassment and intimidation, including a further assault involving her son and online threats and intimidation directed towards her fourteen-year-old daughter. The impact has been so serious that there are concerns about her being able to return safely to school.
For this family, the fear is not confined to what happened to their son on 4 July. They have been feeling unsafe in their own home, in their neighbourhood and in relation to their children's education, safety and future. These concerns have been raised with the police and the other agencies.
Your donation will help provide:
• A safe home set-up, deposit, rent and moving costs, so the family can get somewhere secure without waiting any longer.
• The basics of living: beds and bedding for seven, furniture, a cooker, a fridge and a washing machine. The family were told they could not bring their own belongings into the current accommodation.
• Getting the children to school: including transport if the family has to move away from the area.
• Independent advice, legal and practical support to help the family as needed.
• Immediate essentials: the costs that come with moving a family of seven at very short notice.
The aim is simple: to give this family the safety and stability they need while the longer-term situation is resolved.
A gofundme page has been set up and I would love it if we could contribute to help this family out from an awful situation which just should not happen in our amazing city. Let’s show them the good side of our city and our community:
Thanks
Tim & Becks
Michelles Nomination in full.
This is a very sad email that I write. It does come with a trigger warning about addiction.
A friend of mine is going through a terrible time and is really struggling financially. She doesn’t know I’ve put this nomination in as I don’t want to get her hopes up if I’m not successful and also a lot of this is painful for her but she needs some hope and faith in humanity more than the money in all honesty.
My friend A is a single mum and has three gorgeous kids: one 16year old girl, one 14 year old boy and one pocket rocket aged 7.
A is struggling to work and care for her neurodivergent daughter who she is coming to realise still needs full time care regardless of her age. Her two other boys are amazing and are being registered as young carers to offer them some support and respite through organisations like Barnardo’s and the YMCA. Despite this they still need their mum and A is trying to keep it all together.
Throw into the mix that the children’s father, whose involvement is very sporadic at the best of times, has relapsed into alcohol and drug addiction, which means that A is doing everything herself and has no financial or emotional support for herself or her children.
If this group can help this family to pay a few bills and keep the wolves from the door, I think not only will this ease A’s burden (at least financially) but also give her a glimmer of hope.
God bless you all and thank you for taking the time to consider this.
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