Tori said she cried when she saw the city coming together to help save the charity
A woman has sacrificed two Oasis tickets in an effort to save baby hospice Zoe’s Place from closure. The centre on Yew Tree Road in West Derby provides vital support for babies and children up to the age of five.
However, children and families received the devastating news last Monday, October 7 that the centre would close before the end of the year and staff would lose their jobs in 30 days time. Since the news broke, the ECHO has joined with people from Liverpool and beyond in supporting fundraising efforts to keep the hospice open.
Tori, 26, who owns Tori-Tattoo in Prescot, is one of the latest people to join the city-wide campaign. Tori told the ECHO: “I’ve waited a long time to see [Oasis]. But a lot of people were re-selling tickets for stupid amounts of money just to get some profit. To be honest, I knew about Zoe’s Place for a long time and I wanted to give back.”
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Tori, who specialises in fine-line tattooing and is also a mentor, debated giving someone a free tattoo as a way to raise money for Zoe’s Place. However, she decided putting her Oasis tickets in a raffle would raise the most money for the hospice.
Tori described the city’s reaction to news of the closure as “beautiful”. She said: “I actually cried before when I saw the community coming together. It’s overwhelming but at the same time I kind of expected it from Liverpool.
“People always say when they visit the city it’s like being at home. I think just seeing everybody, loads of businesses come together and raise money is so special.”
She added: “I know a lot of people who have children with disabilities, and I’ve had someone pass away quite close to me as well. So I wanted to give back to a charity that I really did believe in.
“If I had a child and I found out [Zoe’s Place] was closing down, I’d be gutted. I wanted it to be Liverpool-based as well for the community. So it was a very big thing for me.”
Tori is aiming to raise a whopping £50,000 for Zoe’s Place. She said the Oasis tickets will go to the winner whatever outcome of the campaign to save the charity is.
Having met with charity bosses last week, Liverpool West Derby MP Ian Byrne said the race is now on to raise £5m in the next 30 days that could save the hospice. There is a huge range of fundraising efforts taking place across the city, from sold-out comedy gigs to music concerts, to sponsored abseils and walks.
Three schoolboys have raised over £300 for Zoe’s Place after hearing about all the children the charity has helped. Meanwhile, a schoolgirl has been creating bracelets to sell and all the donations will be given to the city-wide fundraiser.
Many local businesses are also donating to the cause including Scouse clothing firm Montirex, who have donated over £100,000. The general campaign has now hit over £1m in donations. You can find out more here.
Anyone wishing to enter Tori’s raffle can do so here.
