News

Home Entertainment Room Opens at Donna's Dream House (25/2/2010)

The result of a year's charitable work by the CI industry, the entertainment room at Donna’s Dream House in Blackpool was officially opened on Saturday 13th February 2010.

Donna' Dream House is a holiday home for terminally ill children and their families. Having watched Gary Eastwood, who visited Donna’s Dream House as part of the Secret Millionaire TV show early in 2009, initially donate GBP20,000 to develop a run-down garden area, Ian Morrish, Sales Manager for Integrated Systems Europe, decided to help the project by creating a Home Entertainment Room using products and services gathered from the industry.

The project has been managed by Blackpool-based installer Martin Hudson of A&H Electrical, and equipment has been kindly donated by CSE Solutions, Icon Distribution, Niko UK, Onkyo, PMC and Redline Distribution.

The result is ‘Luke’s Den’, a fantastic ten-seater cinema with room for two wheelchairs, a stage for small shows, a dance area, and gaming, including a PlayStation 3 and Wii console, as well as all of the games a child could wish for.

As Morrish explains, "This is basically a room for the children and their families to have some fun and, for a time, put to one side the troubles that they are bravely dealing with. These are tough times for fund raising, so I am proud of the response by our industry. All of the equipment donated has been put to good use, and the great thing is that between us, we’re making a difference."

Rooms of Dreams - Ten Year Plan

Spurred on by the enthusiasm of the children and their families, and the generosity of the CI industry, Morrish now has a ten-year plan to open an entertainment room each year at similar holiday homes for children with life-threatening or terminal illnesses. "I just hope the industry can pool together again. Having seen the work done at Donna’s Dream House, believe me, it’s worth it!"

If you would like to get involved in future projects, please contact Ian Morrish on 01372 454366 or email him at ian@ad-con.demon.co.uk