A Newcastle branch of an international banking firm will come to local charity’s rescue with an usual offer of support – in the form of a lion, a scarecrow, a tin man and a Dorothy

Martin Glaholm, an Individual Banking Manager at Handelsbanken and Chairman of The Children’s Foundation’s Fundraising Committee, offered to come to The Children’s Foundation’s rescue at the expense of his colleagues. Martin has been a dedicated supporter of The Children’s Foundation and has raised around £10,000 in 10 years of fundraising through many different events. When the charity was given an incredible opportunity by Newcastle City Council to hold a 4-day street collection from 18^th – 21^st December on Northumberland Street – volunteers were thin on the ground. Martin, however, sprung to the charity’s rescue and nominated his banking colleagues to help out and dress as the characters from the Wizard of Oz (the charity’s official mascots) to kick start the collection on Thursday 18^th December. Martin Glaholm, Individual Banking Manager, Handelsbanken, said “The charity needed help and I knew I could persuade some of the team to dress up. It is Christmas after all and if we can help The Children’s Foundation to raise as much money as they can – we know that children in the North East will benefit in the long run. We are really looking forward to it and we hope that many members of business community will come along to see us and empty their pockets” Libby Nolan, Fundraising Manager, The Children’s Foundation, added “I’ve known Martin for a long time now and he is one of our most loyal supporters. I couldn’t believe he had persuaded his corporate colleagues to dress up as our mascots. It shows how charitable and giving people can be over the festive period. We hope to raise around £10,000 over the Christmas season and Handelsbanken involvement will make a huge contribution to this.”