Raising vital funds for NBLA

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/nicest-group-facebook-saved-life-17722642 http://m.email3.telegraph.co.uk/nl/jsp/m.jsp?c=%40gu7iMxM1crgUeeAbQU7TER1Lc3XKxiITpYLAE6RjnRs%3D&WT.mc_id=e_DM1257257&WT.tsrc=email&etype=Edi_Yna_New&utmsource=email&utm_medium=Edi_Yna_New20200617&utm_campaign=DM1257257&fbclid=IwAR11Je2xdbzVjvk2y5A2GuQxWEIwb_SX6gROvbipFZ9L-cwVoLzEnm_fVkI  Hello, I’m Nicola Marsh and I’m the creator of NBLA (Never Be Lonely Again).  NBLA is a facebook group that was started in May 2018 and is run by a small volunteer admin team.  It supports those who are isolated, lonely and in need of friendship.   Since starting as a small local community group, it has now grown to over 4,800 individuals all over the world, providing 24-hour support both online and in person.  Together we support each other, we connect, we talk, we laugh, and we cry, we have made such an impact to those struggling with a variety of problems and have gone on to win a Liverpool Echo Award and a Prime Ministers Award.  Members reach out with varying problems like mental and physical health, isolation, bereavement, drug and alcohol problems, abuse, family and relationship issues.  We provide a safe place where they can share their problems without fear of judgement just a lifeline of support in anyway we can, our mission is that ‘no-one struggles alone’.   We now are desperate to raise essential funds that will help us continue and expand our vital outreach and support, up to now we have been using money from our own pockets, but this is not possible to go on forever.  Anything raised will enable us to attend our coffee mornings which are a vital source of support and companionship, provide food parcels to struggling families so that they don’t go hungry. It would enable us to visit those in hospital who otherwise would have no visitors and provide toiletries, pj’s and other essentials.  To continue to provide sick members with essentials and little pamper gifts to lift their spirits in a difficult time.  It would provide members with a birthday card and small gift as many of our members don’t have human support outside of group and would otherwise get no form of celebration.  It would enable us to pay for transport to both get out and support our members and to help them get to coffee mornings, events and to essential appointments (we have a dream of one day owning a minibus) which would also enable us to get members out to meet each other and for us to travel to them to help them around the house with any little jobs they may need doing.  To be able to purchase laptops for admin team as currently most rely on mobile phones for everything which isn’t always ideal.  We have in the past done a Christmas party for members and their families who wouldn’t get one and would love to be able to throw another one.  To continue to hold our camping trips that have provided members a small holiday that otherwise would not have one, and give them the opportunity to connect, support each other and build confidence.   Previously members, along with the admin team, have done numerous things to raise funds in the past, but this year it has been extremely difficult to do this due to the covid-19 crisis which has also increased the number of people needing support from us.   Essentially, any and every penny that we can raise will go towards ensuring that those we support will “Never Be Lonely Again” Thank you xx