Fabrice Muamba returns to Bolton Wanders with gifts for CAFOD

l-r: Sophie, Fabrice and Bernard

Fabrice Muamba returned to Bolton Wanderers’ Reebok Stadium today to present hundreds of football shirts, tributes laid at the ground by supporters during his stay in hospital a year ago, to the aid and development charity CAFOD.

The shirts will now travel over 4,000 miles to the retired midfielder’s homeland, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), to be donated to vulnerable children and young people who have become separated from their families through poverty and conflict.

In the emotional days and weeks that followed Fabrice’s collapse at White Hart Lane almost a year ago, the sea of jerseys at the Reebok Stadium, placed by supporters of clubs from all over the UK and Europe, became a symbol of hope and goodwill towards the star as the football community united to ‘Pray for Muamba’.

Speaking of the tributes, Fabrice said: "I was, and I am still completely overwhelmed by the support that we got from all around the world, we remain deeply grateful for all the love and prayers from everyone. It is marvellous that the tributes can go on to do greater good, and I would like to thank CAFOD for their help in making this happen. There are many, many, young children facing difficult lives and they remain in my thoughts and prayers.”

Club Chaplain Phil Mason, who supported players and staff through the incident last year helped Fabrice to pack away the shirts, and said: “We are really are like a family here at Bolton Wanderers FC and this time last year we were all hit very hard by what happened to Fabrice. It made us pull together even closer and the shirts left here by fans from clubs all over the world made us feel like part of an even bigger family. It’s in this spirit that the shirts are being sent to children in Africa who love football and I hope that helps them to feel connected to Bolton Wanderers FC and all of the other football fans in the world.”

Bolton Wanderers Chairman Phil Gartside added: "Quite literally the whole world was praying for Fabrice to pull through. It was an amazing experience to see this and Fabrice has embraced this to try and achieve positive outcomes in a number of areas and this is one of them. CAFOD must be thanked for their hard work in achieving the distribution of the shirts and their role in supporting those youngsters who have such difficult lives.”

The decision by Fabrice and Bolton Wanderers to donate the shirts to CAFOD has today been praised by the Premier League and the Football Association:

FA Chairman David Bernstein said: "The dedication that Fabrice has shown to helping others in the past year has been an inspiration, and it is in keeping with his generosity of spirit that he should want the shirts to be used in this way. I want to congratulate him, Bolton Wanderers FC, and CAFOD for making this possible.”; Premier League Chief Executive Richard Scudamore said: “It’s very fitting that the shirts left at Bolton’s gates...should go to young people in the DRC, whose lives are very different to ours but whose love of football is the same. I applaud Fabrice, Bolton Wanderers and CAFOD for organising this fine gesture, and I hope it will stand for many years to come as a symbol of the healing power that football can play around the world.”

CAFOD works in the Eastern DRC regions of North and South Kivu to support children and young people who are living on the streets or have become separated from their families, including former child soldiers. They work through local organisations CAJED and Centre Olame, who will distribute the shirts in the cities of Goma and Bukavu.

CAJED uses football and other sports as a way of reaching out to the young people in Goma and helping them to access a range of other support and services including emergency, accommodation, healthcare, education and vocational training. Centre Olame works with women and young girls in Bukavu, providing services including education and vocational training, counselling for survivors of rape, and small loans to help women start businesses.

Bernard Balibuno, CAFOD’s programme manager in DRC, said: “Our country is often reduced to negative stereotypes but amid the stories of stalled development, shortages of health and education and the endless insecurity, fear and poverty brought on by years of violence and conflict, we must make room for hope. The gifts coming to us from Fabrice and Bolton Football Club are a symbol of hope. In DRC we have a proverb “The soul sleeps at home and a tree without roots is short-lived”. Fabrice Muamba has not forgotten his roots and he is not short living.”

Sophie Bradley from CAFOD’s UK Head Office also joined in the packing after formally accepting the shirts and said: “We are so pleased to be receiving this donation on behalf of the children and young people we work with in Goma. During their short lives, many of them have felt alone, scared and forgotten, so it’s important to realise that it’s not just shirts we will be delivering; it’s a message; a message that they are not forgotten; a message that people on the other side of the world, people they have never met and probably never will, are hoping and praying for them, just as they did for Fabrice.”

The shirts will be donated to children and young people supported by CAFOD's partners in the East of DRC: CAJED, based in Goma, North-Kivu; and Centre Olame, based in Bukavu, South-Kivu.

CAJED uses football and other sports to reach out to vulnerable children and young people, many of whom are living on the streets or have become separated from their families, including former child soldiers. They then offer a range of support including: emergency accommodation; literacy support to help reintegrate the young people into education; reintegration with their family – where possible and appropriate; advice and education relating to health and drug abuse; vocational training (carpentry, sewing, auto mechanics, hair & beauty, electronics); and monitoring and support for ‘at risk’ children – working alongside local schools.