Thank you for taking the time to visit our JustGiving page.

This year, GDS Productions announced their support for Ronald McDonald House Charities, the independent charity which provides free ‘home away from home’ accommodation to families with sick children in hospitals across the UK.

We dedicated our Friday evening performance of “Beauty and The Beast” to raising money for this very worthy cause, with a special gala performance.  As well as setting up this JustGiving page, we held a raffle to win a deluxe Disney toy set and also rattled collection tins after each performance to raise some extra pennies.  Having set a fundraising target of £500, we are thrilled to have raised more than double our original target!  Our donation will accommodate a family at one of the Charity’s Houses for a minimum of 40 nights.

Choosing RMHC was particularly close to the hearts of one of the Junior Chorus members, Willow-Rose Cheeseman and her family, who have been coming to watch the GDS pantos since they saw Treasure Island in 2012.  Despite being a keen theatre-goer, Beauty and the Beast was Willow-Rose’s first ever experience of being on stage.  Her mum Aimee said: “I can’t put into words the immense gratitude I have to each and every one of the cast and crew who looked after Willow-Rose in her first ever panto.  She is a completely different child than she was a few weeks ago and has been given a massive life lesson that she can do great things just by being herself.”

“It is also fitting that she was given the opportunity to be in the panto when GDS was supporting Ronald McDonald House Charities.  After staying in the Camberwell House for 19 weeks before our first daughter Esme-Willow passed away I can assure you that the money raised will mean the world to everyone unfortunate enough to have to use the facilities. I owe this charity everything; they gave me precious time
with Esme.  In 19 weeks I had to make memories of her life to last me all of mine.  I didn’t know about the Houses and all that they offered until I needed to use one myself.”

Ronald McDonald House Charities provide a place to stay for more than 7,000 families with children in hospital every year.  The Charity’s 14 houses across the UK are situated in or near hospital grounds and enable seriously ill children to have their families close by when they are undergoing treatment and to maintain a degree of normal family life.

Thank you to you all from everyone at GDS Productions!