Darren is in Paradise
Celtic go all-out to give Blantye cancer patient a night he will treasure
A Blantyre teen had the Celtic team jumping through hoops for him during a dream visit to Paradise.
Darren Valentine was given the first-class treatment during a special visit to Celtic Park organised by the Les Hoey MBE Dreammaker Foundation.
Nurses treating the 16 yearold cancer patient at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow asked Les to arrange a treat for the Celtic fan.
And Les certainly worked wonders – arranging for Darren to be picked up in a limo and taken to the stadium for Wednesday night’s Champions League qualifier against Linfield.
After the 4-0 win for the Bhoys, Darren, a St John Ogilvie High pupil, was invited to meet the team and manager Brendan Rodgers.
His grandfather Arthur said: “Darren’s been a Celtic fan since he was born, and this was an absolutely amazing night for him.
“He loved the trip in the limo, and the driver couldn’t have been any nicer. He was a great fella and put Darren right at ease as he was a nervous wreck at first.
“The guy was a Rangers fan, but happy to have the Celtic tunes on for Darren!
“They had non-alcoholic bubbly for Darren to have as well. It was a great experience for him.
“The players couldn’t have been any better with Darren. They were all giving him cuddles and getting pictures taken with him.
“And Brendan Rodgers especially had a lot of time for him, Darren said he was brilliant.
“Leigh Griffiths is his favourite player, I think because he’s a bit cheeky and a bit of a character!
“As he was injured Darren didn’t get to see him, but he was delighted to meet the rest of the team and the manager.
“We really need to thank Les and the Dreammaker Foundation for making this happen.
“Les does a great job for all the kids being treated in at the hospitals, and he does it while holding down his own job too. He’s some man.”
Les thanked Clyde Valley Limos for providing transport, and Celtic coach John Kennedy for helping to arrange Darren’s visit.
He said: “It was brilliant to see Darren had a good night at Celtic Park. He travelled in style and really enjoyed the match.
“Celtic invited him to meet some of the players in the dressing room, and he got his picture taken with the likes of Moussa Dembele, Scott Brown and Brendan Rodgers.
“A big thanks to Clyde Valley Limos, and to the driver who was a Rangers fan but got into the spirit of things and had the Celtic songs on all the way there just for Darren!
“And to Celtic’s John Kennedy, who is a Dreammaker Foundation patron, for helping me make sure Darren had a brilliant night.”
Search for ‘Les Hoey MBE Dreammaker Foundation’ on Facebook for more on the work of the charity.