Jack Clarke visits Beacon after selecting Foundation of Light for Utilita prize

We were delighted to welcome Jack Clarke to the Beacon of Light after the SAFC winger selected the Foundation of Light as his Community Organisation of the Month.

Utilita Giving will be teaming up with Sunderland AFC throughout the 2023/24 season to give back to the Wearside community, with first-team squad members nominating one charity each month to win the award.

After nominating the Foundation of Light for the prize, which includes a £500 donation, the Black Cats fans’ favourite visited the Beacon to learn more about our programmes and meet some of our participants.

The 22-year-old met Foundation of Light Deputy CEO, Jamie Wright, who gave him a tour of the facilities at the Beacon of Light while talking about some of the Foundation’s work.

Clarke visited the Arriva World of Work classrooms and the rooftop pitch, meeting participants from Every Player Counts, before heading down to the Indoor Arena to join in with the primary school skipping festival.

On visiting the Beacon, Clarke said: “I knew they were doing great work, but actually coming here today was a real eye opener for me, and it would be for a lot of other people if they were to come down.

“I’ve seen a lot of people here today and they’ve all been smiling, it looks like a real happy place to be."

Clarke is the latest Sunderland AFC player to visit the Beacon after the recent EFL Week of Action tour with several first-team players and the visits by Aji Alese and Pierre Ekwah to take part in cooking sessions.

After showing the SAFC star around, Wright said: "We are really pleased that Jack has chosen us as his Community Organisation of the Month.

"We've been very lucky to have so many players join us at sessions recently and I think it shows that the team has a better understanding than ever of the work we do at the Foundation.

"Jack seemed to really enjoy seeing what we do, and I know he made a few of our participants' days by engaging with them and taking photos."

Supporters can donate to the Foundation and enter the draw to win a signed Jack Clarke shirt and A3 print by entering our Crowdfunder prize draw: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/win-jack-clarke-signed-bundle