Our charity of the year for 2024 is Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH). This was selected by MindWorks colleagues after it was nominated by our web developer Adam King.
Adam’s 5-year-old son, Dougie, has a rare condition called opitz G/BBB syndrome which affects his everyday life and requires many hospital visits and stays. But Dougie and his parents’ experience is also one that has gone on to inspire people around the globe and lead to many thousands of pounds in donations to GOSH.
In 2018, when Dougie was just six months old, the family took their first holiday in the Cotswolds before heading into hospital for an operation. After talking with the Airbnb owner, Jodie, she refused to charge them for the stay then, or for the following year when they visited again. She said that she was so inspired by Dougie’s story that she had decided to write a book encouraging other short-term rental owners to write their stories about their own inspirational guests they had encountered while renting out their properties.
Just before the end of last year, Jodie wrote to Adam to tell him that Volume 3 of Hospitable Hosts: Inspiring & Memorable Stories From Airbnb Hosts Around The World To Educate & Motivate launches this month and had also been picked up for a Netflix show.
This chance meeting has now led to many thousands of pounds being donated to Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity from the sales of the books as well as from many Airbnb hosts around the world.
Every day, around 750 seriously ill children and young people from across the UK are seen at GOSH. This extraordinary hospital has always depended on charitable support to fund patients, families and staff battling the most complex illnesses, as well as fund the pioneering research that happens at this hospital. To find out more, please visit www.gosh.org.
