Hillside grotto gives charity £37k boost

The grotto at the Doagh Road garden centre was open to the public from November 23 until December 22, with more than 100 volunteers helping Santa give visitors of all ages a warm welcome.

CLIC Sargent fundraising manager for County Antrim, Christine McClune, said: “We were delighted to have the opportunity to run the grotto at Hillside and the amount of money raised is an incredible boost to the Homes from Home Appeal.

“I’d like to thank Hillside for supporting CLIC Sargent, all of our fantastic volunteers who gave up their time so close to Christmas to help us reach this total and everyone who came along to visit Santa.”

CLIC Sargent is Northern Ireland’s leading children’s cancer charity and the Homes from Home Appeal aims to build two specialist houses close to the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children and the Belfast City Hospital NI Cancer Centre that can be used by families of children and young people who are undergoing cancer treatment.

The houses will be provided to families free of charge and offers them the ability to remain close to their loved ones while they undergo treatment as well as the chance to maintain a sense of a normal family life by keeping the whole family together.

The first Home from Home at the Royal officially opened in December; however fundraising is still required for the teenager and young adult Home from Home.

To find out more about the appeal, log on to www.clicsargent.org.uk/northernirelandappeal