Shropshire mum launches life jacket appeal for refugees

Joanna Seabright, from Radbrook Green, Shrewsbury, saw the photos of the dead boy on the television and decided the time had come to do something to help the thousands of desperate refugees who are making their way from Syria to Europe.

She has launched a crowd-funding page and hopes to raise thousands of pounds to buy life jackets for those who are making the dangerous journey.

The 37-year-old marketing consultant said: "I just felt I had to do something. I was was watching the TV and had an epiphany moment. I saw the photos of the little boy on the beach in Turkey and knew that something had to be done about the situation. Even if I can only help in a small way.

"I know the logistics of getting the life jackets to those who need them could be difficult so perhaps any money my crowd-funding page raises will be donated to the Red Cross who are already doing this sort of work.

"These people are so desperate that they resort to criminal gangs to bring them across the water and for that reason it will be hard to get life jackets to them.

"If I can just get to £5,000 that will be great. This is quite a naive approach and perhaps there is someone out there who will be able to help with the logistics of it all. But I just felt the need to do something.

"It is more to highlight the issues that surround this topic."

She added: "There is no clear plan, I am not a logistics person. It was just something I was spurred on to do from the pictures I saw on the TV.

"Perhaps we can just raise as much money as we can and then donate it to the Red Cross for the work they do with the refugees."

Anyone wanting to donate to Joanna's crowd-funding venture should go to #lifejackets for refugees or www.indiegogo.com/projects/lifejackets-for-refugees.