Palace fans raise more than £2,000 for needy kids this Christmas
By Sam Smith
An alliance of Crystal Palace Football Club supporters’ groups has raised more than £2,000 to ensure South London’s under-privileged children receive a gift at Christmas.
Pulled together by the Holmesdale Fanatics, nine groups have teamed up under the charity name We Are Palace to encourage donations to the Salvation Army Christmas Present Appeal.
We Are Palace presented the gifts to the Salvation Army’s Croydon Church last weekend. Toys will be distributed to under-privileged families in time for Christmas.
The appeal follows an initiative led by the Holmesdale Fanatics which raised £4,000 for Norwood and Brixton food bank.
Adam Hepburn, a spokesman for We Are Palace, said: “It’s been a testing year for everyone across the community. We, as the Holmesdale Fanatics, came together alongside fanzines and websites, and wanted to come together under one banner.
“It’s a really great community club, we wanted to come together as a collective and felt that we could do a lot of great stuff together. It’s a nice campaign to support, making sure under-privileged families can have a nice Christmas.
“I’m really proud to see the Palace fan base coming together. We met our target within a couple of days. There were donations that came in from worldwide.
“Coming together under one banner will allow us to have a strong voice and an impact in the local community. We’re stronger together, and that’s really what this is about. There’s much more to come over the next year.”
The groups involved include Five Year Plan fanzine, The Eagle’s Beak, The Holmesdale Online forum, CPFC Polska, Proud and Palace, CPFC USA, Red n’ Blue Army, and the Back of the Nest podcast.
A spokesman for the Salvation Army said: “The generous donation from Crystal Palace fans to our Christmas Present Appeal will allow us to bring festive joy to local children who might otherwise go without a present and to support families to put food on the table this Christmas.”
Pictured top: Members of the We are Palace charity
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