Fundraisers celebrated at 11th annual JustGiving awards
Melanie May | 26 September 2023 | News
A 12-year-old boy who raised over £20k for The Brain Tumour Charity in his sister’s memory and an 82-year-old who sailed 125 miles in a homemade tin boat for charity are among the winners of the eleventh annual JustGiving awards.
This year’s GoCardless JustGiving Awards took place last night (25 September) and celebrate the feats of fundraisers and charities that have used JustGiving in the last 12 months to raise money for good causes.
Television personality and podcaster, Jamie Laing and radio host, Matt Edmondson hosted the ceremony, which saw the winners announced at the Roundhouse in London.
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The individuals and charities were selected from more than 13,000 nominations by a panel of judges including Radio DJ Rickie Haywood-Williams, Actress Angela Griffin, longstanding fundraiser Caroline Jones, and the president and general manager of JustGiving, Pascale Harvie and put to a public vote.
The winners
Teen fundraiser of the year – Gabriel Clarke. The 13-year-old carpenter’s ‘Bowl for Ukraine’ prize draw and his ‘Hope Bowl, made from three types of wood to represent conflict, food and education have seen him raise over £278,000 for Save the Children.
Young fundraiser of the year – Harry Smith – in memory of his sister Emily, Harry swam a mile, climbed England’s highest mountain, and cycled home from Addenbrooke’s Hospital where his sister was cared for, raising over £11,000 for the Brain Tumour Charity.
Celebrity fundraiser of the year – Bill Bailey embarked on a 100-mile walk from Cornwall to Devon in honour of his close friend and comedian, Sean Lock, and raising over £140,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support.
Charity of the year – My Name5 Doddie Foundation saw over £2 million raised and 38,000 participants in its 2023 campaign, Doddie Aid.
Outstanding commitment – Richard Benson started fundraising began after his partner Camille lost her son Ethan to suicide and later took her own life. Richard began hosting and participating in fundraising events like festivals, garden parties, charity dart nights and obstacle courses and to date, has raised over £18,000 for Papyrus – the suicide prevention charity.
Creative fundraiser of the year – Major Mick Stanley – 81-year-old, retired Army Major Mick built the ‘Tin-tanic’ – his own boat, out of corrugated iron, curtain hooks, and hosepipe, and rowed an oar-inspiring 125 miles, raising over £11,000 for the Children on the Edge.
Endurance fundraiser of the year – Gary McKee ran a marathon every day in 2022, raising over £1mn for Macmillan Cancer Support and Hospice at Home West Cumbria.
Community hero – Krista Sharpe left her teaching job to help run a charity that supports young carers.
2023 special recognition award – Josh Patterson has completed countless fundraising challenges, most recently running a marathon in every city in the UK (76) raising £320,000. He also became the first able-bodied person to travel across the country in a wheelchair, in support of his friend Ben, raising £20,000 and during COVID, he completed a 24-hour run around his 14ft patio…following it up with 5 marathons in 5 days around the same patio, raising almost £25,000 combined.
Pascale Harvie, President and General Manager at JustGiving said:
“Last night’s ceremony was amazing, I felt so privileged to be in the company of some of our incredible fundraisers and charities. They don’t do what they do for praise, but they wholeheartedly deserve it.
“Over the last 12 months, they have quite literally gone above and beyond to do good and make our world a better place and I cannot thank them enough for that.”
Pat Phelan, MD of UK & Ireland and Chief Customer Officer at GoCardless added:
“We’d like to congratulate everyone who was recognised at this year’s GoCardless JustGiving Awards, from the nominees to the finalists and winners on the night.
“The incredible stories we’ve heard are testament to the creativity, dedication and generosity of fundraisers and their supporters up and down the country. We’re exceptionally proud to do our part to ensure that fundraisers and charities have a seamless, secure and cost-effective way to continue collecting donations for the causes that are close to their hearts.”
Since JustGiving began in 2000 more than £6 billion has been raised for good causes across more than 180 countries.
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.