Losing a sibling is devastating; St Wilfrid’s made it bearable. Please join me to make sure hospice care is here for the future.
"Last summer we said goodbye to my beautiful, bubbly little sister, Chantelle. She was just 38 when she died, leaving her two sons, myself, and our whole family devastated.
The only light at this terrible time was St Wilfrid’s Hospice. Their care was incredible; making sure Chantelle was always comfortable, checking on her regularly, and looking after the whole family at the hardest time in our lives.
My name is Shellie and, like you, I’ve seen the news about hospice funding. And I’ve seen that St Wilfrid’s is facing the harsh reality that their care is costing more than they are getting.
We can’t lose this amazing service. Which is why I am asking if you will help secure its future? Together we can make sure St Wilfrid’s continues to provide care and support for patients and families like mine for many years to come."
Chantelle was a one-off
"They really broke the mould when they made Chantelle. She'd walk into our Nan’s nursing home, demand the Alexa speaker play something upbeat, and get all the residents up dancing. They’d be listening to something relaxing when she walked in; by the time she left, they’d be dancing to Superman by Black Lace. It was hilarious.
Chantelle became ill in May last year. It didn’t stop her getting up to her usual tricks though, wearing fake tan so the doctors thought she looked healthier than she really was. But in a few short weeks she was admitted to hospital, and then in July she was transferred to St Wilfrid’s for palliative care.
I remember the day that Chantelle arrived at the hospice. We were blown away by how beautiful it was. The atmosphere was bright and welcoming, and it even smelt nice. Chantelle was immediately comfortable, calm and more at ease than she had been in a long time.
Her room opened onto the gardens, where we all enjoyed watching the nature and wildlife passing by. She had robins, blue tits, woodpeckers and butterflies. One day, she even had two little ducklings trying to make their way into her room.
The care that Chantelle received was incredible. The nurses are lovely, and everyone, even staff and volunteers in the cafe, were there for us when they could see us getting emotional. Being at St Wilfrid's made such a difference to our family, especially her two sons, Rio and Jaxon.
And the care hasn’t stopped since she has died, as we have all been offered bereavement counselling.
I know that support from our generous community helped my sister die with dignity. Please will you help make this happen for more people?
Thank you for taking the time to read about my amazing sister. She's always in my heart and I’m sure she would be proud to know her story is helping to secure the future of St Wilfrid’s.
Wishing you all the best
Shellie
Urgent appeal for support - a message from Colin Twomey, CEO of St Wilfrid's
"Despite our best efforts and the incredible support of our community, we are still finding it difficult to pay for our care. Rising costs, a National Insurance hike and stagnant government funding (which covers less than 30% of our total costs), are having a major impact on our financial sustainability.
A recent additional government grant has provided us with some relief, but can only be used for buildings and equipment. With 80% of our costs being spent on salaries for our amazing team of experts, we now face the real prospect of having to reduce some of the services we currently provide to our patients.
My heartfelt thanks goes to our amazing community, who are standing by us in this time of adversity. We are incredibly grateful for your generosity in trying to reduce our funding gap by donating, fundraising, leaving gifts in wills, playing our lottery and visiting our shops. I’m sorry to have to ask you to step up once again, but we urgently need your support to help protect care for our patients and secure our future."
Your support makes all the difference
A gift from you today can help patients like Chantelle to live well at the end of life, and help secure the future of St Wilfrid’s. Here’s the difference your donation could make.
£27.44 could help someone avoid a hospital admission by providing an hour of care at home.
£33 would be enough to provide an hour of support to patients, carers and professionals through the hospice’s Nurse Line service.
£56 could help someone manage their symptoms and pain by covering the cost of two hours of their care on the Inpatient Unit.
£121 would be enough to pay for a nurse for a whole day, providing expert care and support wherever it is needed.
£264 could help someone avoid a hospital admission by providing eight hours of care at home.
£676 could give someone like Chantelle a whole 24 hours of comfort, support, and care on the Inpatient Unit.
£1,694 This extraordinary gift could sponsor a nurse for two whole weeks.
