They lost their daughter in a failed rescue attempt in Afghanistan.
And now, Linda Norgrove’s parents have given £20,000 of their own money to the latest fundraising push in her name – and had it more than matched by donations.
John and Lorna Norgrove, from Lewis, used their annual newsletter to explain they had decided to donate an additional £20,000 of their own savings to help fund new projects and they asked their supporters to match the funds.
Mr Norgrove explained: “We have several great long term projects that rely on our regular funds and where it’s impossible to stop funding without dire immediate consequences.
“But at the same time we constantly receive applications for inspirational new projects and with our dwindling funds we simply weren’t able to support them.”
Including Gift Aid, their additional contribution amounted to £25,000. So in their Christmas newsletter John and Lorna asked people to help match that in the hope they could raise a total of £50,000 to allow them to support some of these new projects.
Mrs Norgrove said: “Every day the postman was bringing new cheques and our funds were increasing at the rate of more than £1,000 per day. We have also doubled the amount we receive in regular donations. The money is vitally important but we’ve also been touched by the letters and messages of support and encouragement for what we are trying to achieve in this wonderful country which our daughter loved so much.”
The special appeal has seen almost £55,000 more raised than in the same period the previous year. Together with John and Lorna’s contribution and Gift Aid they expect to raise a total over £115,000 since their appeal.
The long term projects the Linda Norgrove Foundation support include a home in Kabul for children with disabilities, a school for poor children and widows and university scholarships.
You can find more information on the charity and its work on the website at www.lindanorgrovefoundation.org.