Boxing coach raises over £600 for NI Children's Hospice

Joe Harvey ran a ‘Box Fit’ training initiative at the Monkstown Jubilee Centre, New Mossley Pavilion and Mayfield Village Hall. The classes were operated on a ‘rent free’ basis, with the money being set aside for the worthy cause. Mr Harvey, who coached former two-time champion Ryan Burnett, also raffled off a pair of gloves signed by Burnett to raise funds for the charitable effort.

In total, £625 was raised for the O’Neill Road facility, with the money being presented on May 7.

Speaking to the Newtownabbey Times, Joe explained: “Thank you to every single person who bought and sold ballots. In total, £625 was gathered for the Northern Ireland Children's Hospice.

"My brother used to go to Horizon House every Christmas Eve with tins of sweets as a way of saying thank you for all of the hard work they do. He passed away suddenly eight years ago. I wanted to do something in his memory and support the work of the Children’s Hospice.

"I ran the Belfast Marathon a number of years ago and donated money to the facility then and I wanted to do something again this year for them. Organisations like the NI Children’s Hospice were hit hard during the Covid pandemic and I wanted to help raise some money.

"It’s heartbreaking to see the young patients at the Hospice and the nursing staff go above and beyond to make them as comfortable as possible. Hopefully the money raised through Box Fit will help.”

Aside from the recent effort in Monkstown, New Mossley and Mayfield, Joe has also been using his coaching skills to support elderly residents at care homes across the province.

He added: “I go to De la Cour House in east Belfast, Giboney House in east Belfast, Magherafelt Manor and Cook Court in Newtownards and do the Box Fit classes with the residents.

"They do the exercises from their chairs and it helps to keep their minds and bodies active. It’s fantastic to see the impact my visits are having and it’s really rewarding.”