RGS community comes together for fundraising concert

MORE than 100 RGS students and family members gathered in the school hall for a concert in support of 16-year-old pupil Alan Nowicki, who suffered life-changing injuries in an accident.

Organised by sixth former Daniel McClean, it featured three student bands – The Jimi Kendricks Experience, The Council and Yellow Number Five – and aimed to raise £1,000.

Alan’s mother, Kamila, who attended the concert, said: “It was a fantastic event. To all the staff at RGS, students, their families and friends, we would like to say a big THANK YOU.


“Thank you for being with us at the last night’s concert and thank you for your continuous support over the last four months.

“Every kind gesture, word, message, donation truly means a lot to us. But special thanks go to Dan, for coming up with the idea of this kind of a fundraiser, being so involved and organising the whole event all by himself!

“The concert was great, and I cannot even imagine how much of your hard work and time it took. You did amazing Dan, once again, thank you.”

She added that all money raised will be used towards the cost of stem cell therapy this summer.

She said: “Alan is fit and strong, still working hard towards his recovery. But we have been researching alternative therapies now, mainly stem cell therapy in Thailand or India.

“The cost of this will be in the region of more than £70,000, but as parents we have to try anything and everything that is out there available, so Alan can get the best possible outcome and live a happy, independent life."

The concert was the latest in a number of fundraising events organised by members of the RGS community, including a home baked foods stall run by students and a non-uniform day since Alan’s accident in December.

The initial £20,000 fundraising campaign was set up to fly Alan to Poland, where intensive rehabilitation costs less than in the UK. The fundraiser is still live and has now reached more than £25,000 (see more here).

Despite the barriers put in Alan's way, his main goal is to achieve his dream of becoming a Royal Air Force pilot; something that resonated with Ripon RAF cadet, Daniel, who also shares a dream to be a pilot one day.

Daniel said: "When I heard about Alan’s accident and what we had in common it struck a special chord., I couldn't just sit and do nothing. It struck me that I or anyone could be in that situation.

"The concert went amazingly and I am so grateful to everyone who supported us with donations, either on the night or online. We managed to raise £1,128 from cash and card donations, meaning even without QR code donations and FRGS profits we smashed our target. With Friends of RGS takings we've probably raised another £200 and once the spike in GoFundMe donations have been included we could be looking at a total raised of over £2,000.

"I want to thank everyone who came, the bands and the tech crew, with a special shout out to Theo’s stepdad for giving us professional sound tech. All the performers were spectacular I know my group had loads of fun and we’re definitely looking forward to more live performances in the future."

"We hope that the total raised can help Alan get the support he needs, including potential new technologies such as stem cell therapies, and I look forward to keeping in touch with the family as they move forward. They have been forced into the spotlight by this event and the publicity surrounding their situation in general so I am grateful for their support and their attendance despite these stressful circumstances."