THE FOUNDER of a Malvern-based charity which supports children and families with special needs cried tears of joy after being awarded a grant close to £50,000.
Kim Philpotts, who set up What Makes You Different Makes You Beautiful (WMYDMYB), could not believe her luck when she opened the cheque last Thursday which said her charity had been given £49,470 as part of ITV’s People’s Project.
Howsell Road-based WMYDMYB were one of five projects in the Central West section of ITV’s scheme who were hoping to secure much-needed funds.
Only three of the five nominees were awarded the money.
Kim said: “When I opened the envelope I really thought I was going to collapse with adrenaline as we did not have a clue until we opened the cheque.
“It meant so much to us all as we have worked around the clock to get the votes in.
“I never in a million years thought we would win ever.
“I want to say a massive thank you to Kim Capper and Russel Petty as they were the driving force behind the campaign going round to businesses in Malvern and Worcester.”
Kim founded WMYDMYB in 2013 after finding out there was a lack of support networks which could help with ‘complex problems’ after her son, Archie, was born with brain injuries.
The charity moved to Howsell Road in 2015 and has gone from strength to strength and it took six months for them to reach the final stage of the People’s Project.
And with the money, Kim now hopes to start an outreach service to support people in their own homes.
“I have worked so hard to get the charity out there and in 18 months from opening the centre I have secured its future for two years, opened a special needs creche and now have this outreach service to offer for a year,” she added.
“This has not been easy with working and lots of hospital appointments with my son but I have put my heart in sole into this to improve peoples lives.
“If you dream it you can do it is all I can say.
“The backing of a community is the success of any charity and we did it.”
To get in touch with the charity, email [email protected] or visit their Facebook page ‘Special Needs Support Network: What Make You Different Makes You Beautiful’.
