Matt and Kirsty Hammond

We became involved with EdUKaid having met the Varneys and our families becoming entwined. With Kirsty working as a teacher, the values of EdUKaid were close to our hearts. Also, as we live ‘Up North’, we were in an ideal position to spread the work of EdUKaid further and I became a volunteer going into schools to promote the School Link Program.

Our fundraising started with our first coffee morning when our daughter decided to run the London Marathon for EdUKaid. It was such a success that it became a yearly event which we couldn’t hold without the generosity of our family and friends.

Bethan Varney

During the Covid years when we couldn’t hold the coffee morning, we did various sponsored events including ’Save or Shave the Beard’ resulting in me losing my pride and joy – my Viking beard – which Kirsty took great delight in shaving off.

Matt Hammond

This year’s coffee morning has been our most successful yet, raising £735. It saw us running out of tables and chairs with people wanting to take advantage of having no restrictions on socialising and staying all morning!

         

Our recent coffee morning success!

My school volunteering has led to us being invited to school fares, musicals and most recently a colour run, as well as getting to educate UK children about what it’s like to be a school pupil in a poor rural area of Tanzania.

Matt delivering an assembly 

For us, fundraising is a family occasion that everyone gets involved in. We really enjoying giving something back, and the fact that EdUKaid's goals align so closely with Kirsty's job and with our beliefs is important. It matters so much that we know all the money we raise goes towards the projects, and not to pay the wages of some CEO or loads of admin costs. That's why we fundraise, and why we fundraise for EdUKaid. 

One of our fundraising events

Future fundraising events we have planned include a street boot sale and a Quiz Night.

By Matt and Kirsty Hammond

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If you’re interested in organising your own fundraising event, you can find out more about how to get started here.