This isn’t one of our usual stories, it’s a call for help. Read carefully and then do something about it, if you can. — Johnny
There are a great deal of worthy charities that deserve the help and support of the general public to continue towards their goals. The latest one that you should know more about is xpro.org and how you can use your old junk and musicMagpie to add to their funding. A charity for ex-professional footballers in the United Kingdom and Ireland, read on for more information about their work and how you can help.
What does Xpro.org do?
Footballers today earn mega money, and people tend to forget the help that some players of yesteryear need our help. The zippy pitches and modern medical treatment that we see now is a complete contrast to years gone by when peopled played for their love of the game under monetary constraints.
What this charity does is research the debilitating conditions that people suffer from after their professional football career. Offering to support and help any ex-professional that it can, Xpro.org investigations have found that four in every five former pros suffer from osteoarthritis – a degenerative joint disease – which makes them around 1000 times more at risk of this problem than any other profession.
While we tend to see the glamour of this sport, it’s crucial that organisations are supported to carry out this research and help the players that used to entertain us or our forebears. Professor Jiri Dvorak who is the Chief Medical Officer at FIFA said: “I am so happy that Xpro has taken this positive initiative and are leading the project.”
«Football needs Xpro and I send the charity my very best wishes in hoping they establish a place in the football community. I hope those who hold this game of ours close to their heart will support Xpro in any way they can.» — Sir Alex Ferguson
To become part of this is simple, former players are automatically members, and it is open to more than that. Anyone from former club staff to family dependants can be part of the movement if they wish and get the help and advice that is needed. Registration is free and it is the only way for former footballers to get this kind of help.
How they help is through assisting any former players in documentation compilation combined with first-hand experience to get things like insurance monies back. What happens is that the Welfare Officers that are employed will run through the process and chase up all the cases on behalf of the member. What’s more to the resources is that there are products provided to help in all manner of ways.
How can you help?
While donation cheques are accepted from their Birmingham office, there is a fair more convenient way to offer assistance. All you need to do is when you’re next cleaning your home; collect all of your old and out of date entertainment collections before scanning and selling them online. You can sell CDs, DVDs and games with musicMagpie and all you need is a bar code and they will give you a FREEPOST label – or in some cases will collect from your home. It’s that easy. Get some space in the home and help others at the same time, win-win. MusicMagpie is known for supporting a range of charities and you can make a difference in so many ways just by recycling old items that are no longer wanted.
