BIRMINGHAM
ROLLER DERBY
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
As a league, supporting charities close to our hearts is very important to us. Recently we have worked with many charities to fundraise and spread awareness, some of these are listed below;
Coppafeel Breast Cancer Awareness Charity - CoppaFeel! | Check Your Chest | Breast Cancer Awareness Charity
B30 and South Birmingham Foodbank - B30 & South Birmingham Foodbank | Helping Local People in Crisis
Ladies Fighting Breast Cancer - A charity supporting breast cancer survivors in Birmingham and the West Midlands - Ladies Fighting Breast Cancer – Offering Cancer Support West Midlands
LADIES FIGHTING BREAST CANCER
Most recently, we supported Ladies Fighting Breast Cancer, a local charity that do amazing work raising awareness for breast cancer and the importance of detecting it early. They also provide great community support to anyone who needs it, running community groups online and in person alongside a weekly choir for further support.
The league recently collected a number of items to LFBC’s hug-in-a-bag scheme, which provides comforting gifts to those about to start their chemotherapy journey. This included puzzle books, make-up, fuzzy socks, and much more! Alongside this, over £100 was raised for the charity during the last WFTDA game that Birmingham Roller Derby hosted.
One of our own league members is an ongoing activist for this charity since facing her very own battle with breast cancer. Jo Long, one of our fantastic A-Team blockers shares her personal story below;
"Activism and charity work is of huge importance to myself and many league members within BRD. In 2020 I was diagnosed with breast cancer, which was a complete shock - I had no idea that I could get breast cancer that young and had never regularly checked my boobs.
As a league we do some fabulous charity work, and during our recent final 5 Nations game we raised money and donated items for Ladies Fighting Breast Cancer. This charity were beyond helpful for me whilst going through treatment and do so much for people with a diagnosis in the West Midlands – for example, before starting treatment I was sent a ‘Hug in a Bag’ full of lots of items to help me through and put a smile on my face. The NHS saved my life, but the wraparound, emotional, and holistic care usually falls to other people, such as these charities, and it is an honour to be able to give back to them through Roller Derby.
As a result of my diagnosis, I am passionate about sharing the message that all skaters of all genders need to know how to check their chests and what to do if you find any changes. I decided to join Coppafeel as a Boobette volunteer where I give informative talks to people all over the country, online or in person, about how to Encourage, Educate and Empower you to check your boobs/pecs/chest! If your league, workplace or community group would like a talk or a stall please get in touch."
B30 & SOUTH BIRMINGHAM FOOD BANK
B30 & South Birmingham Food Bank is seeded by The Trussell Trust, a charity which runs the largest network of food banks in the UK, they emergency food and support to people in crisis.
Over the past few months, we have collected food bank donations, totalling 162.7kg worth of food donations so far!
B30 Food Bank do great work providing support to local people in crisis, giving emergency food and help to those in need.