We spoke to Manjit about her fundraiser in memory of her late husband, Kal.
Fundraising is a great way to volunteer your time, help to raise awareness and raise valuable funds so we can support more people like Manjit and her family.
My husband Kal of 31 years was diagnosed with Huntington’s Disease in 2017 when he turned 50. When Kal was diagnosed we weren’t aware of the condition being hereditary or in his family so it came as a complete shock.
What support did you have from the Huntington's Disease Association?
"Myself or Kal were not provided any information about Huntington's disease by the neurologist who had diagnosed him. I started to do my own research to see if there was anything I could do to help Kal to maintain his quality of life for as long as possible. I came across the Huntington's Disease Association website in and I contacted our local Specialist Adviser. She came out to visit myself and Kal, spoke about Huntington's disease and what we can do to help him and was brilliant at helping us to get the right benefits as time went on."
Why did you decide to raise funds for us?
"There is no cure for this condition and limited medical support available for patients or families affected by this condition. Kal’s condition progressed at a fast pace and Kal sadly passed five years after diagnosis. I was contacted by our local newspaper (Derby Evening) after Kal passed who asked me to write a tribute to him, they heard Kal was a huge Derby County FC supporter and in his own right a great footballer during his lifetime."
We contacted Derby County FC to ask if we could hold a fundraiser during a match day for Huntington's disease, and they agreed we could do a bucket collection for the last home match of the season in April. We decided to complete the newspaper write-up about Kal’s life and his love for football and his family, and include that we were going to be at DCFC raising funds and awareness for Huntington's disease.
"This exposure was great, myself, our daughters, family, friends all shared across all platforms of social media. Family and friends were happy to help with bucket collections, we got ten buckets, we had flyers printed with Kal’s photo on the buckets, and we had t-shirts made so we stood out. People recognised Kal from the buckets, and our t-shirts which helped and the generosity was amazing during these hard time."
What did you enjoy most about planning and hosting your fundraisers?
"This was my first ever fundraising event, it was quite stressful at times, liaising with DCFC and the local newspaper to ensure everything was on track for the day. My daughter designed the t-shirts, we arranged the buckets and got the leaflets ready explaining Huntington's disease to handout. My main objective was to ensure we spread the word and raise awareness of Huntington's disease. Any contributions collected would be a bonus. We were surprised how people were generous with their contributions and we got to speak to other DCFC supporters who had known Kal for a number of years."
Huntington's disease affected our lives and took our beloved husband and father away. We wanted to keep his legacy alive, raise awareness and funds to help with future research as our main reason for fundraising.
Top tips for other fundraisers thinking about organising something similar?
"It's very rewarding, it doesn't matter how big or small your fundraising event may be, as long as we keep raising awareness of this disease. I would love a cure to be found so patients and families don't have to go through this in the future."
Thank you to Manjit for sharing her story with us.
Volunteers Week
If you are looking for ways to get involved with the charity for Volunteers Week, fundraising is a great way to do this. You can find lots of inspiration and events in our fundraising section of the website.
