Terry Holt, 99, from Stockport turns 100 years old on Christmas Eve and this year instead of asking for presents, she is asking for donations to Save the Children’s Gaza Emergency Appeal.
Terry, who is a WWII veteran has chosen to celebrate her 100th birthday with a mulled wine and mince pie coffee morning at her home in Stockport on Friday 22nd December, where she is hoping to raise over £1,500 to support children affected by conflict in Gaza.
Terry has been volunteering with Save the Children for 73 years, the charity was founded in 1919, four years before Terry was born, making her Save the Children’s oldest known living volunteer and supporter.
However, the current conflict in Gaza has particularly resonated with the 99-year-old due to her time spent in the Auxiliary Territorial Service (the women’s branch of the British Army) during the Second World War. In the 1940s Terry was based in the Middle East where she worked in Jerusalem, Cairo and the Suez Canal. Terry saw first-hand how difficult life was for children in the region back then. The impact the recent escalation of the conflict in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian territory conflict has had on children, has motivated Terry to continue in her fundraising efforts for Save the Children and use her milestone birthday as a reason to generate even more funds.
Terry is also the founder of the Cheadle and Gatley Save the Children branch, which she set up in 1959. Since records began in 1986 the Cheadle and Gatley Branch has raised over £132,000 for Save the Children. The success of the Cheadle and Gatley branch led Terry to be invited to Buckingham Palace, where was met and congratulated on her work by HRH The Princess Royal, Princess Anne, in 1977.
During Covid Terry walked half a mile a day with her walking frame; raising over £2000 for children in conflict. She has already raised over £700 of her £1,500 target for children in need of support in Gaza.
Terry said:
“As I celebrate my 100th birthday, I feel so grateful for the life I have had, and I wanted to do something to raise much needed funds to help children who so urgently need support.
When I was stationed in the Middle East in the 1940s, I saw first-hand the fate of children growing up in conflict zones. 70 years later as I watch the news and see schools, hospitals and mosques being destroyed it fills me with sadness. It is easy to feel helpless in the face of such suffering, but we need to try to remain hopeful and do our bit.
I have supported Save the Children for as long as I can remember, and as a mother and grandmother myself I feel it is my duty to fight for the rights of children and do what I can to try and help them grow up with a brighter future.”
To donate to Terry’s fundraiser please visit her Just Giving page: Paula Holt is fundraising for Save the Children (justgiving.com)
