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A busy Ballymena mum says it’ll be treats all round after winning a £1,000 Ballymena Gift Card to spend on making Christmas magical.

Kathy Croskery, 43, scooped the top prize after entering the Win Your Dream Christmas competition backed by Ballymena Business Improvement District (BID).

“I’m so shocked to have won,” said Kathy. “I saw the Win Your Dream Christmas competition on Ballymena BID’s Facebook page and it was the name of the competition that encouraged me to enter. I have four children, aged 10, 9, 7 and 4. My dream Christmas is time with family, and seeing the delight and excitement on our children’s faces.

“I’m self-employed and run a small business selling ladies’ clothing and I always support the small independent businesses in Ballymena like Bluebird and Camerons. We often don’t see the hard work that goes into running a small business, the struggles and the late nights, but it’s the small businesses that supported us in the pandemic, and we have to support them in return.

Kathy Croskery, Win Your Dream Christmas winner, with daughters Lucy and Carly. Photo submitted by Ballymena BID

“I haven’t even started Christmas shopping yet, so with the Ballymena Gift Card, I’ll be able to get presents for the children and a few nice things that we wouldn’t normally have. The kids will be so excited when they hear we’ve won. They don’t get pocket money so I might allocate a bit to a day out in Ballymena, we can have lunch and the kids can each choose one thing they’d like. Once you’ve got kids, you don’t tend to treat yourself anymore, so I might even treat myself too!

“At the children’s school, we club together and buy a Ballymena Gift Card as our regular gift for the teachers and classroom assistants instead of the One4All Gift Card we used to get. The Ballymena Gift Card can be spent with 116 businesses, both big brands and independent businesses, so it offers choice but also helps our local town.

“I’ve got a big family. This Christmas, the six of us will be at home for lunch and there will be 29 of us at night time. Then on Boxing Day, both sets of grandparents will be over. With the cost of living everything is so much more expensive now. I’m so excited to have won the Dream Christmas competition and I can’t wait for Christmas.”

Include Youth spreads festive cheer at Galgorm Care Home

L to R: Stephen Reynolds, Ballymena BID chair; Emma McCrea. Ballymena BID; Roy Smyth, Outdoor Adventure and Natalie Jackson, Fairhill Shopping Centre. Photo submitted by Ballymena BID

The Ballymena Gift Card is led by BID and supported by the Department for Communities.

Emma McCrea, manager at Ballymena BID, said: “Everyone at Ballymena BID would like to congratulate Kathy on winning this fantastic prize. Not only will Kathy be able to make her dream Christmas come to life thanks to a £1,000 Ballymena Gift Card, but every penny will be spent here in Ballymena with our local businesses, spreading the festive cheer throughout Ballymena.”

The Ballymena Gift Card is part of the Town & City Gift Card initiative from fintech Miconex, organisers of the Win Your Dream Christmas competition alongside Ballymena BID.

Colin Munro, managing director of Miconex, said: “Choosing the Ballymena Gift Card is a powerful way to support local businesses, with a level of choice that no other gift card can offer. We wish Kathy and her family a wonderful Christmas.”

Ballymena mum of four wins £1,000 Dream Christmas competition