West Ham United's players provided some festive joy when they visited Queen’s Hospital in Romford to wish young patients, staff and families a merry Christmas.
First-team players Vladimír Coufal and Flynn Downes as well as Academy goalkeeper Jacob Knightbridge made the surprise visit earlier this December as part of the Club’s Players’ Project.
The trio spent their time speaking with the children, taking pictures with families and staff, and handing out goodie bags as they spent valuable time with those on the hospital’s Tropical Lagoon and Tropical Bay wards.
And with the children clearly delighted when the players arrived and posed for photos, Coufal was quick to explain the importance of such visits to help the wider east London community.
“You can see how much it means to the kids,” Coufal enthused. “It is difficult to describe their reaction, but they all were very happy to see us.
“I like to visit the children at the hospital because I have two kids and you can see how happy it makes the children. Being kind and graceful to others is part of the West Ham community; you can see how grateful the children are to see us when we visit. It was great to see some West Ham fans too.”
One such family to meet the players was those of seven-month-old Edith. Informed of the player’s visit early that morning, her family rushed home to make sure she was waiting in her West Ham babygrow when the players arrived.
“The visit from the club was a really nice end to a tough few days,” said Edith’s Dad, Ritchie Hayden. “The players were really nice and very down to earth; they spent a lot of time with us and the other children. My father-in-law is a big West Ham fan and a season ticket holder, so we took some nice photos for him.”
The visit to Queen’s Hospital was organised as part of the Club’s Players’ Project, whereby men’s, women’s and Academy players regularly give their time to engage with individuals, groups and causes across the community.
Earlier this year, West Ham United duo Coufal and Łukasz Fabiański visited Queen’s Hospital to surprise emergency care nurse Emer Szcygiel, who received a special thank you for the role she and her colleagues played during the COVID pandemic.
Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust (BHRUT) Chief Executive Matthew Trainer said: “I’m delighted that the children staying with us could have a special visit to help raise their spirits, at a difficult time of year to be in hospital.
“I’d like to thank West Ham United for visiting us and for their continued support throughout 2022. The club is a huge part of our community, and we value the close relationship we have.”
