Special Training Ground Surprise for iThrive Mentee
Thursday 30th October, Bolton Wanderers in the Community (BWitC) surprised one of our iThive mentees with a visit to Bolton Wanderers Football Club’s (BWFC) Eddie Davies Training Ground. Joseph joined his mentor and his dad on what he thought was to be a trip to the BWFC Club shop. Little did he know BWitC and BWFC came together to make his visit all that more special.
Thanks to BWFC Head Coach Steven Schumacher who surprised Joseph with some BWFC merchandise and of course his very own Mason Burstow BWFC home shirt. Prior to their training the first team all stopped to speak with Joseph, sign his retro Bolton shirt and take photos.
Speaking on their visit to the training ground, Joseph’s dad, Victor, said “This is absolutely tremendous. We’ve met all the football players and he’s got an amazing old signed shirt that I can put on his wall.”
“He’s met his favourite player. I’m happy with that. He’s happy with that. He’s got another signed shirt there, it’s absolutely brilliant and I can’t thank Bolton Wanderers for everything they have done.”
We would like to thank the BWFC Club Shop for supporting us in being able to surprise Joseph and make the experience so special.
BWitC provide a range of Mentoring provisions for young people across Bolton supporting through 1-2-1 and group sessions to ensure they have opportunities to make steps towards a positive future.
Joseph’s dad, Victor, speaking on working with our iThrive Mentor Stuart, “It’s been fantastic, it really has. When Joseph got out of Hospital, Stuart got in touch with us and ever since he’s been in touch with us, he’s just been a rock.”
“Stuart’s amazing and what he does for youths and people like Joseph. He’s an absolute inspiration to kids that are fighting cancer or are on the wrong path. You’ve got someone like Stuart who can turn up and go ‘No, I’m going to turn your life around’ and that is what he’s done. To bring him here to Bolton Wanderers, our home town, it’s fantastic. It just puts a smile on his face it really does.”
“The first time he picked us up he took us to the [Toughsheet Community Stadium] and he took us round. He took us to the pitch, to the boxes upstairs, it was fantastic. Because Joseph doesn’t walk about that much it was nice to see him get out. I don’t want him just sitting in his bedroom playing his games. I showed his mum all the pictures and he had a smile on his face. He was smiling and that’s what I want to see on my little boy, I want to see him smile again.”
Bolton Together’s iThrive programme provides emotional health and well-being support for children and young people in Bolton. iThrive helps young people work through challenges they are facing before they escalate by promoting confidence, resilience, and positive mental health. Bolton Together leads this offer which is delivered by our voluntary sector members and funded through Bolton NHS Foundation Trust and NHS Greater Manchester. The Bolton Together iThrive Hub reviews referrals and navigates young people to the right support, remembering to offer support to the parents and carers too. By working in partnership, the community and voluntary sector are providing youth centred, safe and supportive spaces for young people aged 2-19 years (25 with SEND) to explore their feelings, set goals, and find the tools they need to thrive.
Bolton Wanderers in the Community’s mentoring program is a vital and valued part of this partnership, providing short-term, goal-focused support for children and young people aged 8–11 years.
Find out more or make a referral: www.bolton-together.org.uk/ithrive-2-19-years-referral-form/
We need your help to continue supporting more young people like Joseph.
Last season our mentors supported 75 young people through the iThrive project, 7 young people through our Positive Chances programme and over 160 students across our HEADSTART programme. But we don’t want to stop there. We’re calling all local and national organisations that can help us to continue and grow our mentoring and mental health programmes for young people across Bolton.
Want to see how you can support and provide positive chances for young people in our town? Contact Lisa at lsimpson@bwitc.org.uk