OSFC Fundraising for SPARK Oldham
Staff and students at OSFC have been busy fundraising and collecting donations for the SPARK Oldham Christmas Fundraising Challenge over the last couple of months. Year 13 students, Cameron Gates and Ellie Collison have been working closely with SPARK Oldham for sometime now and were delighted to have more students getting involved.
Cameron, has really benefitted from his time working with SPARK Oldham;
I’ve been a young leader at SPARK for about 18 months now, and in that time I’ve taken on increasingly more opportunities to create an impact within our local community. This includes running a local youth club, helping to facilitate HAF sessions, and creating a safe space for open conversations between young people like myself. Going into being a young leader, I was extremely shy and unskilled in youth work, and working at SPARK has made me a much more optimistic person as a result of my increased confidence from working alongside people who continually offer encouragement with their smiles and kind words. Having seen the positivity that we’ve cultivated in Oldham, I am proud that alongside working and volunteering at SPARK Oldham I’ve also been engaged in fundraising at College with fellow students to support the SPARK Christmas Appeal. The fundraiser was a massive success, and I would absolutely encourage anyone who’s able to get involved with anything at SPARK to do so - the effect it makes on the people around you is apparent, even in the small ways that may seem insignificant to some, it’s a massive difference you make to others!
OSFC staff held a bake sale with delicious homemade cakes and cookies, raising £160.50 and have generously donated toys, pyjamas and food. For every £50 raised, SPARK will provide a Christmas Hamper Pack for a family in crisis.
The Student Union held a “Fuel Your Spark” Snack Shack event; selling cakes, sweet treats and fresh fruit. The students were given £50 seed money to run the event and they went on to raise £170 to take the joint fundraising total to £330.50.
The Mayor of Oldham joined students for a presentation event with SPARK OLDHAM to mark the conclusion of the fundraising efforts for this year. The students were presented with certificates to thank them for all of their hard work and commitment.
Year 13 student and SU member, Alex really enjoyed getting involved with this initiative;
Getting involved in raising money for SPARK Oldham has been a really rewarding experience for me. It’s so fantastic to see real efforts not only to provide support, but to understand people and their struggles and to shape help to exactly what they need. The sense of purpose at SPARK is truly infectious – everyone truly believes in the work they do. Anyone could take a leaf out of their book, and I definitely think more students should get involved going forward
Cindy Bramhall, Employment Engagement Officer, coordinator for this fundraising effort, is really proud of all of the students who have been involved;
I am really pleased to have had the opportunity to work with staff and students at OSFC to support SPARK Oldham’s Christmas Campaign. It was fun to organise the fundraising initiatives and it feels amazing to have raised the profile of SPARK and all the fantastic work they do. Together, we made a real difference for local families who need our support this Christmas!
Kim Rogers, Founder, SPARK Oldham CIC:
A massive thank you to Oldham Sixth Form College for being able to support the Christmas appeal at Spark, it was great to see the staff and Student Union getting involved in this and using the £50 start up money to raise so much, this will directly support families that struggle with the cost of Christmas and take that burden away so no child goes without. Children will receive toys, new PJS and underwear and the families will receive a food parcel
Cindy, Cameron and Ellie will be joining SPARK Oldham on Saturday 6th December for the Family Volunteer Day to help to box up the Christmas hampers for families in need from all of the donations received.
If any other students would like to get involved in volunteering for SPARK, please contact info@sparkoldham.co.uk
