- Leicester’s GNG FC and gas network Cadent team up for charity football match
- Event set to raise funds for Alzheimer’s Society
- GNG FC pledging to raise dementia awareness in the Asian community
One of Leicester’s biggest amateur football clubs has joined forces with local gas network Cadent to bring hope to people with dementia.
GNG FC, one of the country’s biggest black and minority ethnic football clubs, is hosting a charity soccer match at its flagship Riverside ground, off Braunstone Lane East, on Friday (9 February).
Cadent gas engineers from across the East Midlands will be squaring up to a team of staff from the company’s offices in Hinckley in a bid to net a tidy sum for Alzheimer’s Society and raise awareness of dementia across communities in Leicester.
Among those donning a football strip will be former Leicester City Women’s player, Vicky Grieve, together with former trainees at Derby County and Aston Villa.
Their efforts have won the VIP seal of approval. Cheering from the sidelines will be the Lord Mayor of Leicester, Councillor Rashmikant Joshi, together with Deputy City Mayor Councillor Piara Singh Clair MBE, Assistant City Mayor Councillor Vi Dempster and Lord Willy Bach, Police and Crime Commissioner for Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.
Kick-off is at 7.30pm. Tickets are available on the gate at £2 for adults and £1 for children. Hot food and drinks will be on sale throughout the match.
Co-organiser of the event is Sunny Khera. Sunny, who works at Cadent’s Hinckley site and is Director of Football at GNG, said: “It’s great to see two organisations coming together with a shared goal – to tackle dementia.
“Cadent is pledging to raise £100,000 for Alzheimer’s Society and make at least 1,000 staff ‘Dementia Friends’.
“While as part of GNG’s community strategy, we are proposing to support Alzheimer’s Society to educate the local community about dementia and mental health. There is a real challenge within the Asian community and it’s considered a taboo subject so GNG are really supportive of what Cadent is doing.”
Helen Whittington, Alzheimer’s Society Services Manager for Leicestershire and Rutland, said: “It’s fantastic to see Cadent and GNG FC uniting against dementia. We are very grateful for their efforts.
“We would like to wish both teams the very best of luck. At the end of the day, whoever lifts the trophy, the real winners will be those living with dementia and their families.”
Cadent launched its two-year charity partnership with Alzheimer’s Society last June.
GNG (Guru Nanak Gurdwara) FC started in 1969, with a group of Asian teenagers passionate about the beautiful game and social inclusion. It is now one of the biggest black and ethnic minority football clubs in the country. The club moved to its current home, the flagship Riverside facilities, in 2014.
10 facts about dementia
- 850,000 people with dementia in the UK – set to rise to one million by 2021.
- Dementia is the leading cause of death in England and Wales.
- One person develops dementia every three minutes.
- Dementia is not a natural part of ageing – over 40,000 people under the age of 65 are living with the condition.
- Dementia is caused by diseases of the brain – diseases such as Alzheimer’s cause nerve cells to die, damaging the structure and chemistry of the brain.
- It’s not just about memory loss. Although dementia often starts by affecting short-term memory, it can also affect the way people think, speak, perceive things, feel and behave.
- People can still live well with dementia. Scientists and researchers are working to find a cure but until then support and treatments are available that can help with dementia symptoms and managing daily lives.
- £40 pays for five people with dementia to attend an Alzheimer’s Society ‘Singing for the Brain’ session
- £150 pays for an Alzheimer’s Society National Dementia Helpline Advisor to provide 10 hours of crucial support to people affected by dementia