Leading local charity Extern has thanked the people of Ballymena for their kindness in helping to support its life-changing work through its partnership with Fairhill Shopping Centre.
The charity, which announced its fundraising partnership with Fairhill last year, said that the hundreds of pounds raised through the collaboration has already made a huge difference to the lives of young people across the borough as well as those tackling problem drug and alcohol use.
Among the activities organised with the support of Fairhill have been a Back to School fundraising drive last Summer, a mental health ‘Tea and Talk’ day at Wildflower Bakery and Coffee Shop and a special Santa’s Grotto in the run-up to Christmas. The partnership has also offered support to many more shoppers and visitors with outreach and awareness-raising activities in-store.
“Partnerships form a vital part of our work in engaging with local communities and raising awareness of the need which is out there for the most vulnerable and marginalised in our communities,” said Grace O’Neill, Fundraising Manager with Extern. “Being able to join forces with such an established name as Fairhill in Ballymena has undoubtedly provided an incredible boost to our work in the town and given us a strong foundation to continue our fundraising work in the area.
“We’d like to offer a warm thank you to the generous people of Ballymena for their support and to Fairhill for choosing us as their charity partners last year.”
For more information on Extern’s range of services in the area, visit www.extern.org