Leeds man makes the final for this year’s JustGiving Awards to celebrate his charity achievements in memory of his loved ones

Richard Benson from Leeds has been named as a finalist in this year’s Outstanding Commitment category for the GoCardless JustGiving Awards for his dedication to undertaking a year of charity challenges.

The 55-year-old is undertaking the feats in memory of his partner, Camille and her son, Ethan, who both tragically died by suicide a few months apart. All money raised from his challenges is going to PAPYRUS, a charity which supports young people at risk of suicide.

So far this year he has completed; Run your age in miles (January), Charity Darts Night (25th March), Yorkshire Three Peaks (6th May), garden party and cake sale (21st May) and a Leeds 10k run (18th June) for which he has already raised more than £9,400.

Coming up is a 10k run on 15th July, the National Three Peaks from the 18th to 20th August, the Great North Run on 10th September, a parachute jump on the 17th September and a Christmas Ball and auction on the 2nd December.

After being nominated by members of the public, Richard was selected by a panel of judges which included Radio DJ Rickie Haywood-Williams, Actress Angela Griffin, longstanding fundraiser, famous for wearing a charity shop outfit every day for one year, Caroline Jones and the general manager of JustGiving, Pascale Harvie.

He said: “I was very surprised to be nominated. It came totally out of the blue for me but it’s a great opportunity to generate more awareness of PAPYRUS and the suicide prevention agenda out there so I’m really happy about that.

“Camille was a loving and much-loved person. She worked hard, lived life to the full and volunteered for causes she cared about. She had worked as a volunteer for Suicide Awareness and Prevention for many years and following Ethan’s death she was determined to raise as much money as possible for PAPYRUS.

“I wish that Camille could be with me to raise that money as planned, but as her family and loved ones we are all determined that this cause that she was so committed to will get as much support as we can muster and these awards are a way of recognising this and raising awareness of the charity’s work.”

This is the eleventh year of the JustGiving Awards and the judges agreed that this year’s event will be an incredibly emotional yet truly inspiring evening. From more than 13,000 nominations, the judges worked hard to shortlist 21 inspiring finalists, three for each of the seven awards categories.

Pascale Harvie, President and General Manager at JustGiving said: “Our fundraisers and crowdfunders are amazing and whilst they don’t do what they do for praise and recognition, every single person like Richard deserves it.

“The ceremony is a magical evening but most importantly it’s a moment for us at JustGiving to thank, formally recognise and celebrate the individuals, groups and charities who have done extraordinary things in the interest of others.”

Members of the public now have the opportunity to vote for the fundraisers they want to see crowned for their efforts via: https://page.justgiving.com/awardsvoting2023

Seven winners as well as JustGiving’s Charity of the Year will be announced at the ceremony which takes place at London’s Roundhouse on the evening of September 25th.

Winners will be presented with their official trophy by well-known faces from the world of celebrities and sport.

Previous JustGiving Award winners include Max Woosey, who was crowned 2022 Young Fundraiser of the Year for camping outside for hundreds of nights in memory of his neighbour and raising funds for North Devon Hospice.

Three dads walking were awarded Fundraising Team of the Year for raising significant awareness for suicide prevention and funds for Papyrus and the late Dame Deborah James’ family received a special recognition award after she created wide-scale awareness of Bowel cancer and its symptoms and raised millions of pounds for the Bowelbabe Fund.

Pat Phelan, MD of UK & Ireland and Chief Customer Officer at GoCardless added: “We’re proud to recognise the finalists and everyone nominated for this year’s GoCardless JustGiving Awards. We’re also grateful to all of the donors who support them. By combining the energy and enthusiasm of fundraisers like Richard with the generosity of the nation, truly amazing things can happen.”

NOTES TO EDITOR

For further information contact  press@justgiving.com

*All figures quoted include GiftAid and are accurate at the time of releasing this press release.

Figures quoted relate to fundraising activity on JustGiving only. JustGiving is one of many fundraising platforms that people can choose from when fundraising for events such as the London Marathon.

About JustGiving
JustGiving is the world’s most trusted platform for online giving. We help people raise money for the charities and people they care about the most. In 2000, JustGiving.com began with one simple goal – to enable charities to receive donations online from anywhere in the world. Fast forward 22 years and over £5 billion has been raised for good causes in almost every single country in the world.

JustGiving became part of Blackbaud, the world’s leading cloud software company powering social good in 2017.

To note – JustGiving does not charge a fee on donations but instead operates a voluntary contribution model, meaning people donating can choose to leave a ‘tip’ if they wish. The only non-optional fee is a 1.9% + 30p to cover card payment charges.