A fundraising extraordinaire from Oldham, who has raised thousands of pounds for charity despite his own health struggles, is auctioning off gifts he received to support pensioners.
Ibrahim Yousaf, commonly known as Ibby, has been fundraising for good causes since he was 12 years old.
Now 18, Ibby, whose recognitions include a British Empire Medal from the late Queen Elizabeth II when he was just 13, British Citizen Youth Award and an Oldham Civic Appreciation Award, continues to devote himself to helping people in need, even when he receives a gift for his outstanding work.
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The England Cricket Board (ECB) recently gifted Ibby with a picture of the 2019 ICC England Cricket World Cup squad, signed by every player, and a bat signed by the England 2017 team against West Indies including stars such as Joe Root, Stuart Broad, Jimmy Anderson, Alastair Cook, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali and Johnathan Bairstow.
Instead of wondering where he would keep the gifts, Ibby asked the ECB if he could auction them off in order to raise money for pensioners in Oldham.
Ibby said: "I was truly blown away when the ECB sent me these very special gifts after coming across my recent fundraising for our Oldham A&E but I can’t keep it knowing so many are struggling in our community, especially our pensioners this winter.
"So I asked the ECB could I auction it to help our pensioners supporting Oldham Age UK as I couldn’t accept gifts and I normally auction every gift I receive to help local charities."
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Ibby said he struggles to accept gifts and that he was "grateful" to the ECB for allowing him to auction of the items.
The teenager will be selling the items through a closed auction online.
People looking to purchase the items can bid privately by messaging Ibby on his Facebook account, with the auction having opened on Thursday, October 10, and closing tomorrow (Sunday, October 13).
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