With Kind Regards........

I was planning to publish a new post in a couple of days but I got home this evening to a letter from the Kids Company that I felt I had to share:

Dear Simon,

On behalf of the children and staff at Kids Company, I wanted to write and thank you for supporting us through your fund raising page.  I want you to know how much we appreciate your generosity - you make a real difference to our children, and thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Over the years, Kids Company has grown into a much valued sanctuary for children and young people who are challenged due to childhood maltreatment.  kids Company's ability to reach out to these children is made possible because of the extraordinary support of people like you.

Over the summer, across the country, children and young people attended celebrations for their school and college attainments.  kids Company generated it's own awards ceremony as hundreds of our kids gained nationally recognised qualifications.  However, their stark loneliness was highlighted as only a handful of parents attended the ceremonies.

Amongst the group was a young boy whose mother had left him with paedophiles.  We found him wrapped in a sheet at  the ma's house.  He was profoundly traumatised and disorientated.  After ensuring that he was taken into care we paid for him to go to a college where he would receive individual attention.  he managed to get 5 A*s, 4  Bs and an AS level after studying for a year.  Another of our young people, having  arrived homeless, aged 16, managed not only to graduate from Oxford with 2:1 but she also got her first job as a teacher.

All these transformations are because the public have supported us and the children have exercised courage to make good use of the opportunities generated for them.  I cannot think of anything more valuable than reaching children who have been maltreated with hope for a better future.  Profound thanks for being our friend.

With kind regards,

Camila Batmanghelidjh
Chief Executive
Kids Company

Reading this has made me in turns angry, uplifted and proud and if it has had a similar effect for you please take a couple of minutes to visit my Virgin Money Giving page and sponsor a few pounds.

Please remember that I am funding all the expenses of the trek so every penny you donate will go towards supporting the Kids Company.