John was nominated by our Fundraising Coordinator Tracy Boden-Coyne, for his ambition and continued support for fundraising for LFC Foundation programmes including extraordinary efforts organising and running a Fun Day.

Tracy said

‘John held a Fun Day on the 13th of May 2023 with family and friends. He dressed up as Spider Man, got his beard and hair shaved. He also had a raffle, tombola, bouncy castle, buffet and he got custard pies and wet sponges thrown at him. In total he raised £700 which he split between LFC Foundation and Jamie Carragher 23 Foundation.’

‘John held this fundraiser with help from his wife Emma and Liam Brady, one of our disability coaches but the idea was all his own to support the Foundation.’

‘John is a great fundraiser and always comes up with his own ideas. His fundraisers are always happy fun filled events, which include his family and friends, making it a great day for everyone to enjoy whilst raising funds for the LFC Foundation Inclusion programme.’

John has been a participant on our Ability Counts session for a long time and has held previous fundraisers to support the Inclusion programme. He is an inspiration to younger participants.

John said,

‘For the fun day, my wife helped me to create and distribute posters and sponsorship forms around my local area. I organised the bouncy castle and some raffle prizes with some generous people also donating prizes and donating the cream and paper plates, sponges and buckets which would be used to throw at me! I did this as I wanted to raise money for the LFC Foundation to help adults and children continue to play football in the community. Jamie Carragher’s 23 Foundation were also recipients of the funds raised which will allow disabled children to take part in football.

‘I had such a great group of people around me supporting and helping with the event including my beautiful wife, Emma. It’s an honour to get this award as I didn’t do it for praise, but I always want to help people.’

John’s wife Emma said,

‘John has Cerebral Palsy and is a full-time wheelchair user but he has never let it stop him and his ambition to help others.’

John has done lots of charity work/events and has raised lots of money for different charities. His fundraising includes 5 parachute jumps, 3 fun days, 2 sponsored beard and hair shaves, 2 sponsored swims and collecting money outside shops.

‘He puts a lot of time, effort, commitment and enthusiasm into his charity work. The day itself took months of planning from John and it paid off with a great event that was enjoyable by all who attended. John even made a speech with his talking aid to thank everyone who has helped with the event and who had donated. I'm very proud of John for all that he does, and I would like to thank the LFC Foundation for recognising his work with this award. John does a lot for others and it's great to see his hard work getting recognised.’

Alongside being a key member of the Foundation’s Inclusion programme, John has been a volunteer football coach for 11 years. Starting off playing wheelchair football, he soon completed his FA Level 1 Football Coaching course, coaching disabled footballers with the Foundation’s Game On Academy in partnership with Nike.

He has worked with a range of disabilities and with both adults and children and has helped to encourage, support and improve the participants football skills. He is a great coach and always makes you feel at ease, and he makes the sessions fun and inclusive for everyone. It's his aim to encourage disabled people to participate in football and feel included.