Golders Green man with long covid gets £10,000 lottery funding for new charity

A Golders Green man who is still suffering from the effects of Long Covid has received £10,000 worth of national lottery funding for a new charity, Get Well Soon, to help the families of victims of Covid-19.

In March 2020 Eli Seliger went into the Royal Free Hospital and spent 63 days in its Intensive Care Unit. His eldest daughter, Adina Loebenstein, said that during that time the local community were “amazing. They dropped off food, supplies… things for Shabbat. They were really extraordinary”.

Mr Seliger, who runs the UK branch of Zichron Menachem, aimed at giving respite to parents of children with cancer, came out of hospital determined to do something to help the families of those who have contracted Covid, or suffer from Long Covid, the after-effects of the condition.

Mrs Loebenstein, the eldest of seven siblings, said her father had vowed “to be able to give to others what he got, and continues to get”, in terms of love and support. Get Well Soon will concentrate on “the pampering, the extras” that spouses and families may not generally receive. So the help could include vouchers for spa days or manicures, or games or ice-creams for the children.

Mr Seliger, who is still unable to work as a result of the severity of the Covid attack, said: “Seeing how the community rallied around my family while I was ill, it gave me the encouragement to do something similar for others.’’