NORWICH City footballer Tom Trybull and his wife Anna have donated £5,000 to East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH), plus a bag of clothes as the charity gears up to reopen five of its shops.
The money comes from sales of children’s book The Story of Tommy T. Tommy T is a pigeon trying to make his name in football. The story is written by Anna, based on the exploits of her husband and encourages young people to follow their dreams.
It will go towards EACH’s fundraising appeal set up at the start of lockdown to address a forecasted income gap of £1.8m over 12 weeks, caused by the cancellation and postponement of fundraising events, and the closure of the charity’s 43 shops.
Following the government announcement that non-essential shops can reopen from Monday (15 June), EACH has decided to open five of its outlets in Norfolk, in a phased reopening plan the good cause hopes will eventually restore the pre-lockdown success of its high street portfolio.
Tom and Anna, who are soon to welcome their first child, presented a cheque and their clothing donation to EACH outside one of the five shops, in Poringland.
Tom, a defensive midfielder from Germany who joined the Canaries in 2017, said:
“The moral of the book Anna wrote is for young people to believe in their dreams and EACH helps to support children and their families living with life-threatening conditions to reach milestones, and improve their quality of life. As a person in the public eye, I hope to have a positive impact on others in the community and we’re both delighted to donate money and clothes to help make a difference to children and EACH’s fundraising appeal.”
Stacey Addison, EACH Major Supporter Fundraiser, said:
“We can’t thank Tom and Anna enough for choosing us to benefit from sales of their fantastic book, and we’re delighted to receive a clothing donation on top of that! The money will help us continue providing vital care for children and young people with life-threatening conditions, and support for their families and the awareness this will raise is hugely helpful at such a challenging and uncertain time.”
EACH shops normally bring in £100,000 a week in income. The first five to reopen their doors, as EACH makes sure it can balance the implementation of new safety precautions, the needs of staff and volunteers, and the commerciality of its outlets, will be the charity’s shops in Plumstead Road, Unthank Road and Bowthorpe Main Centre, all in Norwich, as well as the one in Poringland and another in Long Stratton. EACH will also be reopening its eBay and Amazon outlets.
For the latest on the reopening of EACH shops visit www.each.org.uk/shopopenings. To donate to EACH go to www.justgiving.com/campaign/each-covid19.
Tom and Norwich City are due to get back to Premier League action at Carrow Road against Southampton next Friday (19 June), when the season restarts behind closed doors.
