Rugby World Cup winner Natasha ‘Mo’ Hunt Joins Age UK South Gloucestershire as charity Ambassador
Published on 07 March 2024 10:26 AM
Age UK South Gloucestershire is pleased to announce Rugby World Cup winning scrum-half and Forest of Dean native Natasha ‘Mo’ Hunt as the charity’s first ever ambassador.
As co-captain of club Gloucester-Hartpury, Mo led her side to the Premiership Women’s Rugby title last June, lifting the trophy at the temporarily named “Queensholm” stadium in front of 10,000 fans.
An England international, Mo became a Rugby World Cup champion in 2014 and she earned her 67th cap for the Red Roses last November in victory against New Zealand in Auckland. She will hope to be part of the England squad to play in the upcoming 2024 Guinness Women’s 6 Nations.
Having grown up in Gloucestershire, Mo has often spoken of the inter-generational support she receives from her family that she attributes to the incredible success she has endured on and off the rugby pitch.
Mo said, “My Gram and Grandad have always been a massive part of my life. I’ve been fortunate that I knew my great Grandma and my great Grandad for ages too. Growing up, there’s always been so much love in our family, especially driven by our grandparents who are now great grandparents to my nieces and nephews. I’ve always hugely respected them and loved them to pieces.”
Speaking about her new role, Mo continues, “I’m super excited about becoming an ambassador for Age UK South Gloucestershire so that I can help shine a light on this space. Age UK are crying out for volunteers for people to sign up to befriend an older person. There’s a six-month waiting list for older people that want to have contact with someone. There’s just nobody to fill that void.”
“So, we need to give some time back. Until you’ve tried it, you don’t know how much of a positive impact it will have not just on the person you’re befriending, but on your life as well – it’s a two way thing. It’s really special.”
Mark Flower, CEO of Age UK South Gloucestershire commented, “We are delighted to welcome Mo as an ambassador for the charity and to understand how important older people have been in her life. Mo’s own lived experience means there’s a real honesty and passion to her support and that’s immensely valuable.”
Mark adds, “The demands on our services has more than doubled in the last year. This has put a massive strain on our staff and volunteers. We are excited about appointing Mo as our first ambassador so that she can help us find more volunteers and elevate the areas where our services need support.“
Anyone interested in volunteering with Age UK South Gloucestershire can fill in a form on the website at this address: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/southgloucestershire/get-involved/volunteer/
For more information visit: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/southgloucestershire/
Please see links below to videos:-
Rugby World Cup winner Natasha ‘Mo’ Hunt announced as Age UK South Gloucestershire ambassador
Interview with Mark Flower, CEO
Natasha ‘Mo’ Hunt interview