Liverpool Echo - If I link anything to this newspaper, people on the site have complained in the past, due to the amount of advertising they get subjected to when they open it⌠Taking no chances then - :0)
Photos show scale of damage at fire-ravaged library as âphenomenalâ amount raised
Alex McCormick had hoped to raise just ÂŁ500 for the library targeted during riots on County Road
A woman who launched a fundraising campaign for a Liverpool library targeted by arsonists during riots last weekend has described hundreds of thousands of pounds raised to restore it as âphenomenal.â
During dreadful scenes of violence, the Liverpool Council-run Spellow Hub on County Road was torched and vandalised. The community hub, which only reopened last March, was targeted amid shops being looted and wheelie bins set alight.
Among those apprehended for their role in the disorder was 69-year-old William Morgan of Linton Street, who was found at the scene brandishing a club. He was sentenced to 32 months in prison earlier this week.
The scenes were distressing for many who use the facility, which sits within one of the most deprived areas in the country. Watching on was Alex McCormick, who was spurred into action to create a GoFundMe page in the hope of raising ÂŁ500 towards getting the site back open.
As of Friday afternoon, there have been thousands of individual donations, including from famous faces up and down the country, meaning the campaign has passed more than ÂŁ220,000. Alex, who is from Netherton, told the ECHO why she felt the need to do something.
She said: âIâm in Netherton, so this isnât my local library, I hadnât been in here until about three days ago but I donât think it has to be your local area to feel the impact of it. Weâve got family in this area so it was impacting them as well.
âI think it just shows how important libraries are to everyone and how important books are, they bring people together. This being the target of an attack just, I think, blew peopleâs minds and the show of community through this fundraiser has been phenomenal.â
Alex was among a delegation including Jonathan Reynolds MP, Secretary of State for Business and Trade, who visited the library on Friday. Mr Reynolds was shown around the facility by Parliamentary colleagues Dan Carden and Kim Johnson, alongside staff and Liam Robinson, leader of Liverpool Council.
Alex, who is getting married this weekend, described how she felt watching the violence and destruction unfold. She said: âI think it was just sadness and anger, a mix of the two. Itâs mindless and thatâs hard to comprehend why people would do this. The positivity that has come out the other end is undeniable, itâs been amazing.â
Fire damage to Spellow Library in Walton
She was also keen to downplay her role in the major fundraising, with her initial target being blown out of the water in just a matter of hours. Alex added: âThe reaction has been absolutely incredible, Iâm so overwhelmed.
âIâve said all week, this is not just about me, I might have set up the fundraiser but the community coming together has made this possible to raise all this money. You canât really put it down to just one person but it has been amazing to meet Debbie and Mark from the library and other people from the council and discussing what weâre going to do with the money, how weâre going to make it better. Itâs been lovely to get an insight into how it all runs.â