Thanks a Million fundraising weekend can’t come soon enough for hospice supporter

Hairdresser Claire Lynch, 49, of Cheney Manor, says the Thanks a Million fundraising weekend can’t come soon enough for her.

“I first came across Prospect Hospice 23 years ago, when my father was admitted for a few weeks when he was in the final stage of lung cancer,” she says.

“Dad was a very proud man, and the thing that was most important to him was keeping his dignity. Every single one of the staff were lovely with him, and made sure that he was able to remain dignified throughout the time he was there. It really is an amazing place, and the people there were like family to him, helping him stay calm and still feel good about himself.

“Some years later, I started setting myself some physical challenges, and in 2015 I bit the bullet and did a five-day trek around Iceland to raise funds for Prospect Hospice. We even climbed the Eyjafjallajökull volcano. It was a hard trip, but when you feel you’re doing it for such a great cause, you can really focus, and when we finished the trek it felt incredible.

“A couple of years later I joined the Kilimanjaro challenge to raise money for the hospice. That was even tougher – it was 11 days in total, with a five-day trek, and we were up against the high altitude which leaves you with really low energy levels, and just wanting to sleep.

“But again, you keep on reminding yourself why you’re doing it, and you’re with like-minded people who share your passion for Prospect Hospice, so you get through the bad times by encouraging each other. Just knowing that we were helping people to be able to have the same quality of care that my dad had is what drove us on, really.”

Claire says she was disturbed to learn that Prospect Hospice’s profit from shops alone have dropped by around £1million because of the pandemic.

“I think a lot of people don’t realise that Prospect Hospice is mainly funded by donations from people in the community here, and also that when you need to call on the hospice every bit of care you get is absolutely free,” says Claire.

“It’s so sad that Prospect Hospice hasn’t been able to raise the money it normally can – I know when we come out of this lockdown I’m up for doing another challenge as soon as I can.

“In the meantime, I’m going to donate on the Thanks a Million weekend, and encourage my friends and family to do the same. If we all get together and spread the word, we’ll be helping patients who will get so much out of Prospect Hospice care.”

To find out more about how you can support the hospice through the Thanks a Million challenge, click here.