Why Ryan Reynolds Quietly Gave $13,300 to a UK Girl — And What It Reveals About Him
Ryan Reynolds turned a Christmas wish into reality, donating £10,000 ($13,300) to send 13-year-old Welsh cancer patient Lexi Collins from Deeside to New York City. The Wrexham AFC co-owner stepped in after she was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer last June.
Ryan Reynolds just quietly did something genuinely decent: he dropped a £10,000 ($13,300) donation to help a 13-year-old girl from North Wales get her Christmas wish trip to New York City. No promo, no fuss — just a big assist that made a real difference.
The story
Lexi Collins, from Deeside in North Wales, was diagnosed with an aggressive cancer in June 2025. Since then, she has been through two open-heart surgeries and rounds of intensive chemotherapy. Her family set up a GoFundMe to try to make one thing happen for her this Christmas: a visit to New York.
The original goal was £5,000 ($6,600). After Reynolds — who co-owns Wrexham AFC — added £10,000, the total climbed to £14,663 ($19,600) at the time of writing, which puts that NYC dream squarely within reach.
Lexi’s mum shared how overwhelmed they were by the response and said the plan is to go if Lexi is well enough. Lexi, for her part, kept it simple and tough-minded:
Im not letting cancer stop me going to New York!
Medical update-wise: as of Nov. 20, Lexi had finished her radiotherapy. She still has to get back into chemotherapy.
Who set this in motion
The fundraiser wasn’t run by the club — it was put together by Wrexham Police FC, a team of off-duty police officers who play football. They shared a screenshot of Reynolds’ donation on social media, and, well, that kind of generosity speaks for itself.
Reynolds and cancer causes: this isn’t new
- Earlier this year, he teamed with the Terry Fox Foundation for the Marathon of Hope’s 45th anniversary, promoting a limited-edition collection on Instagram with all proceeds going to cancer research programs in Canada.
- Back in 2023, he supported a cancer firewalk fundraiser held in memory of Aaron from Buckley, Flintshire, who died from a rare brain cancer. Money from that event went to Brain Tumour Research, and Reynolds sent a personal message to those who took part.
Between the philanthropy and his day job co-owning Wrexham AFC, Reynolds clearly has plenty going on off-set — and in this case, it turned a wish into a trip that suddenly looks possible.