Kind-hearted local boy gives to teenagers with cancer
A young fundraiser from Birmingham has made a generous donation to the Young Persons Unit (YPU) at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital after selflessly asking relatives and guests at his birthday party to donate rather than buy him a gift.
Eight-year-old Amar Singh Gill, who attends The Blue Coat School in Birmingham, has been raising money to help teenagers and young people with cancer, who stay on YPU while receiving treatment. For his eighth birthday, earlier this month, he invited fifteen guests to attend his ten-pin bowling party. Instead of buying presents for him, however, kind-hearted Amar asked party attendees to make a donation to YPU. He also requested that family members celebrating the next day do the same thing, raising an incredible overall amount of £320!
Asked why he chose to support YPU, Amar said: “Last year my brother and I had a joint party and raised money for a children’s hospital, but this year I wanted to do it on my own and raise money for grown-ups.”
The Teenage Cancer Trust Young Persons Unit at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham treats people aged 16-25 from around the West Midlands; and thanks to donations like Amar’s, is also able to provide added extras to help make patients’ hospital stays more comfortable.
On Friday 20 November, Amar came to visit the QE to present YPU staff with his cheque and have a look at the type of facility his donation could help fund, including musical instruments; state-of-the-art Xbox, PlayStation and games; and a working jukebox! Laura Beacham, Teenage Cancer Trust Clinical Nurse Specialist for YPU, was there to meet him and tell him about the other things charitable donations provide, such as pizza nights, a specialist teacher, DVDs and computer games.
Laura said: “Kind donations such as Amar’s mean we can continue to provide people going through a very difficult time with a bit of relief. It really does make a difference to be able to chill out in a non-clinical environment with your friends and family, get some quality ‘me time’ on the PlayStation, or focus on learning something new like playing the guitar.
“Amar’s donation will go towards further helping teenagers and young people with cancer, and we’re really grateful to have his support.”
