During his time on The Traitors, Alexander opened up about his late brother, James, who had a
learning disability
A learning disability is to do with the way someone's brain works. It makes it harder for someone to learn, understand or do things.
. He pledged to donate a portion of his winnings to Mencap if he won, unfortunately he didn't, but his heartfelt story sparked a wave of support from fans, leading to almost £95,000 being raised for Mencap.
Watch Alexander surprise some of our amazing supporters who donated after seeing him on The Traitors!
“The money raised for Mencap by people supporting me has been nothing short of incredible and will have a huge impact on Mencap’s important work for the 1.5 million people in the UK with a learning disability."
Breaking barriers and building understanding
Alexander isn’t just about raising money — he’s also about raising awareness and helping end the stigma surrounding learning disability. He shared his thoughts:
“As well as the fundraising, I am also passionate about raising awareness and am so excited to continue doing this. Being different isn’t easy and I’m proud to play a role for an
organisation
An organisation are a group of people who work together.
that breaks down barriers and improves understanding. People with a learning disability still face stigma and exclusion every day - I want to help Mencap increase visibility of learning disability and hope that in doing so we can promote acceptance and inclusion.”
Our interview with Alexander Dragonetti
In this video Richard Lawrence, a Lived
Experience
Experience is when you have learned or tried something before.
Advisor at Mencap, interviews Alexander to find out more about his passion to help people with a learning disability and spread awareness.
We're thrilled to welcome Alexander to the Mencap family
“He [Alexander] has already done so much to raise awareness of our essential work by bravely sharing his family’s story, and in doing so has opened people’s minds about learning disability.” - Jon Sparkes, Chief Executive at Mencap
