We at the Rangers Charity Foundation are calling on the Rangers Family and beyond to help staff and patients at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital and Glasgow Royal Infirmary during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since the hospitals went into to lockdown, nurses have been on a mission to support people in their care by providing treats and fun activities such as colouring-in books – but they cannot do it alone!

We’re therefore enabling people to make any donation to our new fundraising page, from which every penny will be spent on purchasing items which can help ease a patient’s hospital stay during this difficult time.

Our fundraising aim of £2,500 could help to support hundreds of patients across the city, by purchasing items for a free hospital tuckshop, including:

• Bars of chocolate
• Packets of sweets
• Cans and small bottles of juice
• Packets of crisps
• Small packets of biscuits
• Magazines
• Puzzle books

The Acute Medical Receiving Unit at Glasgow Royal Infirmary has 80 patient beds in their unit alone. James Monaghan, Ward Manager, said: “Having this free tuckshop service will support the loneliness that patients are experiencing at the moment because they can’t have visits from loved ones, and access to normal things is just not possible at the moment.”

Christina Campbell, Dementia Nurse and the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, added: “Having this tuckshop would be a way of keeping the rainbow of care going for our elderly vulnerable patients, providing small treats that mean a lot to our patients.”

Commenting on the new initiative, one patient from the Glasgow Royal Infirmary said: “They (the patients) love little treats and magazines - they keep their spirits up and minds entertained.”

Rangers Charity Foundation Director, Connal Cochrane, added: “Everyone at the Foundation is committed to supporting the Glasgow community as much as possible during these challenging times.

“Like many charities, our activities have been significantly impacted by COVID-19, however we hope that we can become a catalyst in generating much needed support for hospitals and their patients.

“Our team has been working hard to offer support where we can within the local community and beyond and will be launching a new weekly fun and educational resource for children to access at home; however, there is also a real desire to support the city’s vital health service where we can.

“We hope that, if able, people will join this fundraising campaign and help to bring some relief to those who have been hospitalised and who will be missing visits from their loved ones. 

“The charitable spirit of the Rangers Family has always been truly remarkable and I hope that by coming together we will be able to make a real difference.  We also recognise that this crisis has brought financial uncertainty for many people, so please do only support this initiative if you feel able at this time.”