Just the ticket to help fund our vital work

Nov 6 2008 by Margaret Shaw, Hamilton Advertiser

WE at the Meningitis Trust are delighted to have the support of top band, the Fratellis, who are helping us raise vital funds. The band pledged their support after a loyal fan of theirs, Calum Macleod, lost his life to meningitis aged just 12.

They have donated several valuable items, including a signed guitar that Jon Fratelli played in the Chelsea Dagger video, to be raffled off. We ask people to dig deep and enter the raffle, knowing that regardless of whether or not they win they will be making a huge difference to the lives of many people who are struggling to cope with the impact of meningitis.

The raffle will be drawn on December 8, which would have been Calum's 14th birthday. With tickets costing just £2 each, Calum's family hope the raffle will raise over £50,000 for the Trust.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.meningitis-trust.org/Fratellis/fratellis-raffle

Meningitis can affect anyone, of any age, at any time. It can strike in minutes and kill within hours. We hope the raffle will not only help to raise funds, but will also raise vital awareness of meningitis.

With as many as 500,000 people living in the UK who have had either viral or bacterial meningitis and up to one adult in every four knowing of someone who has had meningitis, our ongoing work is much-needed. However we are completely reliant on voluntary donations to continue our work, so fund-raising such as this raffle is vital to our future.

Sue Davie, Meningitis Trust.