Westgate residents Bex and Rhys Hughes are on a mission to bring a ‘Little Box of Hope’ into people’s lives.
The couple have created a self care box to inspire mental wellbeing, containing an Independent book and small business made gifts.
The gifts reflect the book, How to be Hopeful’ by Bernadette Russell, and all come from independent UK businesses and publishers.
Bex is the founder of the Ninja Book Box which was created around five years ago to promote independent publishers.
The Ninja Book Box is produced quarterly with a book and up to three related gifts. For each box sold £1 goes to Give A Book charity. Alongside this is the Ninja Bookshop with independently published preloved books across all genres and for all ages.
The latest project is aimed at helping people look forward after the stresses of the last year and a crowdfunder has been launched so that free books can be given to The Kitchen CT9 in Cliftonville and Changing Minds in Westgate to distribute.
Rhys, who is Box office Manager at The Kings School, Canterbury/ the Malthouse Theatre, said: “After the last year we felt inspired to put together a product that would help to guide, encourage and support. Stress, worry and anxiety have been huge during this time and because of this it only seems right that we should all care for each other and endeavour to aid each other as much as possible as we look for hope for the future.”
An original fundraising target of £400 and a stretch target of £600 have already been surpassed and donations are now closing in on a second target of £800. All monies will mean even more books and box items can be bought.
Bex,, 33, is also the founder of the London Bookshop Crawl, says on the crowfunder page: “The Little Box of Hope is a beautiful box of hopeful, inspiring things centred around an incredible book that’s part memoir, and part instruction manual on how to cultivate hopeful practices to help us all feel better, more positive and more hopeful.
“In the style of our usual quarterly boxes we will be curating beautiful and useful gifts inspired by the book to include in the box, and each of these will be made by a UK based small business. Now more than ever small business and independent publishers need our support, and we hope this box will help to inspire both the recipients and the suppliers.
“We will be including all sorts of Ninja extras in the box itself from playlists to recipes and lots more, and will have lots of interactive content for those who would like to have a way to feel more connected.”
The pair, who are parents to boys aged eight and six, have added rewards to the fundraiser for amounts donated. These range from a thank you on social media to a new, independently published book every quarter.
The crowdfunder has 18 days left to run.
Find out more
Crowdfunder: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/the-little-box-of-hope
Website : www.ninjabookbox.com
Facebook: Facebook.com/ninjabookbox