Liverpool football star supports toy donations
Soccer legend heeds the call and lends his celebrity for a worthy cause that benefits disabled children
JOHANNESBURG SOUTH – Community work is what brought former Liverpool F.C. player John Barnes to South Africa at an event held at the Aquanaut Room at Turffontein Racecourse on November 13.
At least three thousand children’s toys covered the floor at a section in the back of the hall. The toys were all donated by sportsmen, who had been attending the functions hosted all over the country by Chairman of Expo Johnny Louch.
“We’re a non-profit organisation that gets enormous pleasure from giving to the community; as you can see there are 3 000 toys on the floor which were all donated by all sportsmen attending the lunches,” said Louch, adding, “our biggest focus is on the young ones and we’ve been able to get 6 000 toys so far.”
Soccer personalities and dignitaries attended the event, which was also in support of charities caring for disabled children.
World Boxing Champion Hekkie Budler from Newlands, Johannesburg joined Barnes in lending their celebrity status for a worthy cause.
John Barnes’s visit to the country had the Aquanaut Room full to the brim with sport fans and ex-professional footballers who came to see him as the main guest speaker.
Louch explained that the motivation behind the charity fundraising events was when “Ex-professional footballers decided to get involved with community work years ago and to help those in need financially. The fundraiser has been going for 12 years. We’ve raised over R2 million, also for former footballers who have fallen on hard times and intellectually disabled children.”
Watch a video of former Liverpool F.C. player John Barnes on our website www.comarochronicle.co.za
