A retired pub landlord and charity fundraiser was "over the moon" when a fellow licensee donated the proceeds of a regular charity quiz to his Children of War fund for Ukraine.
Tony Berry aims to raise £4,000 to cover van hire, diesel, and ferry tickets to transport donations of essentials like toiletries, baby milk, and non-perishable food stuffs to a refugee camp on the Polish-Ukrainian border. Landlord of the Lion Tavern on Moorfields, Dave Hardman, contacted Tony through a mutual friend after reading about his project on the ECHO website.
He said: "We host a charity quiz four time a year, with the proceeds going to Maggie’s Place on the Wirral. This time, as a one off, we thought they should go towards setting Tony on his way. We raised just over £500 this time, which he is very welcome to."
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The Lion Tavern’s donation takes Tony’s total to just under £2,500, more than halfway to his target. He decided to revise his original target of £7,000 after realizing how immediately these essentials are needed.
He will be making the 7-day round-trip with his son Sean, along with family friend and retired police officer Dave Hughes, within the next two weeks. Tony said: "Dave is very much on my level. What he has done shows exactly what Liverpudlians do in a situation like this. People like him are the heart and soul of what’s going on here.
"I’ve spoken to several big corporations, and for them, it’s all about the kudos. They all want to know what’s in it for them."
"When we have raised money in the past, we have always tried to make sure it does not go to a big organization, like Oxfam, who pay huge salaries. We want what we raise to go directly to the root.
"And that’s what we’re doing here. It’s not about me. It’s about getting people the money directly."
He added: "There are several big fixtures coming up. If anyone can suggest somewhere we can watch the football on the way to Poland, I’d love to hear from them."
If you would like to contribute, visit the Children of War Gofundme page.
