A deserving charity urgently needs your help to repair some of the damage done by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Sunshine Fund desperately need to help children in the area with vital and life-changing specialist equipment but have found themselves seriously struggling over the past year.
Like all other charities the fund found themselves at a complete loss when due to Covid-19, all of their upcoming fundraising events had to be cancelled.
The Sunshine Fund purchases specialist equipment for North East children with disabilities when they can't get it on the NHS.
Items such as specialist beds or baths cost thousands of pounds but they completely change the lives of the child and their families.
Recent studies have found that vulnerable children, including children living with disabilities and life-limiting conditions and their families, have been neglected throughout the pandemic.
This is why the Sunshine Fund is so important - but they can't do it without your help.
That's why they urgently need your generosity more than ever.
Siobhan Sargeant, charity director, said: "The Covid 19 pandemic created the perfect storm for us as a small charity.
"2020 was a record breaking year for us as more families than ever applied for equipment for their children due to respite and therapy sessions shutting down, yet at the same time our fundraising events and campaigns were cancelled meaning our income dried up.
"As a for impact charity, we don't sit on huge reserves and limitless pots of cash, we raise funds to purchase equipment from our waiting list within our self-imposed three month time frame and we are proud to be a not for profit organisation.
"We have delivered record numbers of 1-2-1 support for parents and carers who have been directly impacted by shielding and social isolation and overwhelmed with anxiety about how the health crisis will affect their child's future.
"We are proud to be here for our families at a time when they have needed us the most. But the crisis isn't over and there's so much more work to do.
"We have been supporting local families, schools and care facilities for almost 100 years and we want to be here for many more. Please, if you can, help us continue our story and donate today.
" The easiest way to donate is by texting SUNSHINE 5 to 70085 to donate £5 or by visiting our website where you can make a one-off or monthly donation, visit, www.thesunshinefund.org/donate.
"Alternatively you can send us a cheque made payable to The Chronicle Sunshine Fund and post to: The Chronicle Sunshine Fund, 2nd Floor, ncj Media, Eldon Court, Eldon Square, Percy Street, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7JB. Thank You!"
