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Establishing long-term relationships with local people and businesses is critical to Wendy's role. The connections Wendy makes help us raise crucial funds for the hospice; we have to raise over £5 million of the £6 million per year required to run our hospice. Additionally, these connections raise awareness of the hospice and what help and support we offer people in our community.

Wendy is very active locally and draws on her community knowledge, skills and life experience to help businesses and individuals to engage and provide support for the hospice in a variety of ways.

She manages our corporate volunteering days where local business groups can donate their time for a good cause and boost team morale by assisting our gardening team or at our distribution centre helping sort through donations and preparing stock for our shops. Volunteers can learn about how our retail distribution centre operates and experience first hand the amazing work our teams are doing to help our organisation become more environmentally sustainable.

The feedback we receive is wonderful and confirms our valuable position in the local community. Tates of Sussex Garden Centres feel that the hospice is part of our community:

Wendy organises local events such as our ever popular Open Gardens. Events like this are partly about fundraising and, just as importantly, about bringing our community together for a common purpose and promoting our living well message. The beautiful gardens create a feeling of wellbeing for so many.

Last year we welcomed more gardens than ever to the event and this year looks set to produce a bumper crop once again. Launching with our celebrated Hospice event on Saturday 20th May 2023 will see an array of stunning gardens open across the local area and of course not forgetting the ever popular village trails in Ditchling, Hassocks, Hurstpierpoint, Lindfield, Ringmer and Scaynes Hill. Gardens to watch out for this year include Colwood House and Broadwater in North Chailey.

For the full list of events and to book tickets in advance please visit our website at stpjhospice.org