A group of generous Hibernian fans aiming to spread green and white cheer among patients in the capital’s largest childrens’ hospital admit they were “stunned” when an anonymous donor agreed to match their fundraising efforts.
Members of the Hibees Bounce forum joined forces in a bid to buy young supporters at the Sick Kids’ their own NHS-inspired home kit after the shirt became the club’s fastest-selling of all time.
The kit, which bears the slogan ‘Thank You NHS’ in place of a sponsorship logo, was launched last month to display Hibs’ gratitude to health workers treating those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic ahead of the 2020/21 campaign.
And the green and white faithful were delighted when one fellow ‘bouncer’ - who asked to remain anonymous - matched their charitable actions by donating the cost of 15 new shirts, taking the total raised to just shy of £1,500.
Organiser Jamie Millar told Edinburgh Live the idea started with a suggestion to buy one short for a young Hibee currently undergoing treatment at the hospital, but soon grew after several other forum members pledged their support.
He added: “Myself and the other administrators thought it was a great idea to fundraise for this and as the original suggestion was to buy a shirt for a sick hibs kid, then why not thank the NHS as well as putting a smile on a wee hibby's face.
“It shows the tremendous generosity of the fans in these hard times and I want to thank each and every one including the bounce member who has remarkably donated 15 tops matching our total at the time.
“We now have the funds to buy 34 tops when they are released and growing, it is a fantastic effort from all involved.”
Jamie added the shirts would be handed out to young fans on the wards when it was released in July, with any extra kits held back until the busy Christmas period.
Hibs became the first club in the UK to commit to displaying a message of support for health workers on their home shirts earlier this month.
Priced at £47.99, supporters can opt to have the NHS transfer applied for a £5 donation, with all proceeds going to Edinburgh and Lothians Health Foundation - which supports NHS Lothian through a range of charitable initiatives.
The club has also pledged to make the first match of the new season - whenever that may be - ‘Thank you NHS day,’ offering free tickets to health workers.
Further fundraising activities are planned throughout the season.
The Hibees Bounce crowdfunding page can be found here.
