Strabane family transform garden into spooktacular feature for charity

A STRABANE family turned Halloween fun into a force for good this year, raising money for a cause close to their hearts.

Natasha Coffey and her family made their garden at Carlton Drive into a spooktacular adventure, and opened it to the public.

Visitors to the gazebo, which was transformed by ghoulish characters and scary props, were urged to come along, have fun, take a photograph and ultimately make a donation to the National Deaf Children's Society via a QR code.

"My four-year-old daughter, Amelia, is registered moderate deaf and wears two hearing aids," Natasha explained.

"The Society has helped out our family so we wanted to raise money for them so we decided to do the garden up for Halloween.”

She added: "They (National Deaf Children's Society) came out and helped me fill out forms and paperwork, and also registered me for online sign courses.

"I've completed some of those courses, so I've been able to teach Amelia some of the signs too which will be helpful to her if her hearing worsens.

"This is my way of saying thank you to the Society for that support, and helping them continue the work they do”.

To date, £320 has been raised for the charity.

Natasha explained £29 could pay for one-to-one support that will help a family challenge a decision about their vital disability benefits and secure the support they need; £44 could provide an online session from an advice and guidance officer - empowering parents to make sure their deaf child gets the right support at school and £108 could answer 18 calls to the charity's helpline from parents who have just found out their child is deaf, reassuring them they’re not alone.

Natasha would like to extend a word of thanks to everyone who supported the fundraiser.

"My target was to reach £150, but we’ve now raised £320" she added.

"There were so many comments from people saying how great the garden was and how much they enjoyed it.

"I would like to thank everyone who made a donation.

"As well as the QR code which people could scan to make a direct donation, some people knocked on the door and gave a donation to me which I then put through for them."

You can still donate by logging onto:

https://socialsync.app/fundraiser/cr-knd8mzylqd8j4