Spring 2024
Harley Davidsons visit our patients
Caring for carers
Celebrating our amazing community
Secondhand fashion show success!
£65,741Youfundraised
Pass me to a friend!
stwh.co.uk
Address: St Wilfrid’s Hospice, Walton Lane, Bosham, PO18 8QB
Tel: 01243 775302
Email: general@stwh.co.uk
Website: stwh.co.uk
Registered Charity No: 281963
@stwilfridschichester
Welcome to the Spring edition of St Wilfrid’s News!
Since our last newsletter in the Autumn we have had a busy few months at St Wilfrid’s Hospice.
Looking forward to Spring and Summer here at the Hospice, we have many opportunities to get involved, from our always-popular Moonlight Walk in June, to taking part in our Spring Raffle.
We are also excited to be starting a Carers Support Course in our Living Well Centre, focusing on how we can best support individuals who care for people with a terminal illness. You can read more on page 10.
I hope you enjoy reading this edition of St Wilfrid’s News. Thank you to all of our supporters who help us make a big difference to local lives.
Lois Howell Chief Executive
Over a year ago we launched iWantGreatCare, a place for patients and loved ones to review our services. We are pleased to report that we have received over 32 five star reviews so far.
It was very helpful to have this home visit and to know about the different ways in which support is available and the services offered.
No words can express our gratitude to the St Wilfrid’s team. We have total confidence with the Hospice and nothing ever is a problem to them. Each phone call I have made has been dealt with such efficiency.
Whoever you are speaking to at St Wilfrid’s you are treated with respect, kindness, and care. Everyone has time and consideration for you.
My dad spent his last two weeks at St Wilfrid’s and the care, support and understanding provided was so much appreciated. Nothing was too much for the staff - I am indebted to them forever.
Read our reviews or leave your own review on the iWantGreatcare website iwantgreatcare.org
Thursday 13th July 2023 would have been a very normal day for most people, but for our patients and their loved ones, it was a very special morning.
A convoy of Harley Davidsons from the Hogsback Chapter in Guildford arrived at 11:30am, and were greeted by patients and their loved ones, hospice volunteers, and employees.
You could hear the roar of the bikes as they pulled into the Hospice car park, and soon after there was a big cheer from everyone eagerly awaiting their arrival. We couldn’t quite believe how many riders had come to visit us, it truly was an impressive sight to see so many
Harley Davidsons parked up outside the Hospice café. It was not something you see every day, and certainly not something most people expect to see at a Hospice.
Soon after the bikes and riders arrival, patients, volunteers, and a handful of employees started to get ready in borrowed leathers and helmets for their exciting ride out to Emsworth and back.
One of our patients on the Ward, Beverly, was thrilled that we had a chapter of Harleys coming to visit. Bev is a massive Harley Davidson fan, and she has fond memories of her brother and his bikes. She told us a little bit about what the visit meant to her.
“It reminded me of so many Summer days with my brother and his friends. When the bikes pulled in, the noise from a Harley is very distinctive and everybody was standing in the Hospice café waiting for them to arrive, and I started cheering and then everyone else started cheering.
Being on a bike on a Summer’s day, it was amazing. Hilary (one of the riders) was fantastic, she said ‘you’re coming with me’, and at first I was scared because it was painful to get on to the Harley, but the nurses and two very nice Harley dudes came along and helped me get on, and it was so worth it and I’m so glad I was able to do that.
The memories, especially being at this stage of my life and being at a Hospice, to have that kind of connection to something that is so important to me, it was just amazing. My brother had his own Harley; he had a 1999 Ultra Glide and he had others throughout his life, but that was his pride and joy”.
“Unfortunately, I never got to go out on his bike with him as I have been in the UK for 23 years and I haven’t been back to the States. Now that he’s gone, we still have connections through friends; his kids don’t know me very well, as they were babies when I moved to the UK, but we connect through the Harleys!
It was really nice to have that kind of connection with the Harley group, it felt like family, and Harley people are family. Any chapters will tell you that. It would be really wonderful if they came back next year, it would be a really nice tradition.”
Some of the patients who couldn’t go out for a ride got to spend some time with the riders to admire and chat all things Harley Davidson. Many patients were able to come outside and spend some time with their loved ones, and it certainly was a morning to remember. Of course, a few hospice employees couldn’t refuse the offer of a ride or a photo with a Harley Davidson. Here are Glynis and Jayne from our Hospice at Home team enjoying a few minutes
to admire the bikes and pose for a photo.
Some of our volunteers got involved too, including Ali, who said “This was truly brilliant, one of the best things I’ve done in such a long time. I’m so happy that I was given the ride by Ken and received a fridge magnet and a certificate. I hope they come back and others get to experience this amazing treat.”
David Hardcastle, Secretary of the Hogsback Chapter UK says “The Hogsback Chapter were knocked out by the excited and warm welcome we received as we rode into the Hospice car park to see all the patients, staff and volunteers cheering us in.
There’s nothing we like more than riding, displaying, and talking about our bikes to anyone who’s interested. Then, given what an amazing job the employees and volunteers do down here at St Wilfrid’s, it was a privilege to be able to take out the patients, employees, and volunteers who wanted a ride down to Emsworth, and bring everyone back with such smiles on their faces. We’ll be back – you can count on that.”
Over Christmas, we usually expect a visit from Santa, however in December some of our patients on the Ward were visited by fluffy bunnies on New Year’s Eve!
There were lots of smiles on patients’ faces as they got to meet and hold the bunnies.
Late in 2023, we had a surprise visitor called Tony the Pony, who came to visit a patient who loved horses.
The patient’s loved ones said “it was an incredibly kind and thoughtful gesture”.
A huge thank you to the Charlalas and the Selsea Sea Shanty Singers for visiting our Living Well Centre to perform for some of our patients.
Mark’s big sustainability win at Hospice UK!
Congratulations to Mark, our Housekeeping Manager, who won the Hospice UK Sustainability Champion Award. Mark has made a big difference to the way we manage waste, helping us to achieve a 100% diversion of waste from landfills, and so much more.
We are very proud to have launched an art trolley on the patient Ward. The trolley will allow patients’ children and loved ones to enjoy some arts and crafts together.
The money to purchase the trolley and supplies was kindly given from the Warningcamp Relief in Sickness Charities.
From 9th-20th October 2023, we hosted photographer Rankin’s IRemember Exhibition, a collaborative series with Hospice UK, which consisted of eight portraits displaying photos of people who have died and their loved ones who remember them.
The Living Well team is excited to launch a new programme to help carers.
The new programme, part of our Living Well Centre activities, is primarily to assist carers aged 16+ (who are often family members) to offer the best possible support to their clients or family members who are living with a terminal illness. The course is also aimed at helping them to look after themselves as a carer.
The sessions will be delivered by the Living Well team and will include several St Wilfrid’s Nurses, when appropriate. The physio team will also deliver some of the course content.
The groups will be small, consisting of eight to ten carers, and will take place on Tuesday afternoons in the Bradbury Living Well Centre at St Wilfrid’s Hospice in Bosham.
The course will be on a continual cycle so it’s not a problem if carers cannot attend every session. Individuals can catch up on course content they have missed in future rotations of the programme.
Self transport is preferred, however, we can sometimes organise volunteer transport where possible. This will be
limited and will need to be organised well in advance, with a commitment to attend the session.
If you have any questions, or would like to enquire about booking on to the course, please get in touch on our main Hospice phoneline 01243 775302 and ask to speak to a member of the Living Well Services team.
How to be resilient as a carer.
Shortness of breath, fatigue management, weakness, and lack of energy.
Nausea and vomiting, poor appetite/ fluid intake, and oral health.
Assessment, exercise, physiotherapy and equipment.
Understanding when and how to increase medication.
Find out what support is available.
What changes to expect, recognising dying and what to do upon death of a client or family member.
What to look for, positioning, and pressure care equipment.
Dealing with anxiety for yourself and the patient.
Practical advice on how to get up off the floor and telecare.
Thanks to you, our amazing community, we can offer freeof-charge hospice care to local people who need our support.
At St Wilfrid’s, we are able to run our expert end-of-life services thanks to the support of our wonderful local community. Because of people like you who hold coffee mornings, jump out of planes, run marathons and attend
our fundraising events, we are able to care for our community together.
We receive a small grant from the NHS, but the remainder of the £9million it costs to run our services is raised through our community annually. Every £1 fundraised helps us make a huge difference to local lives, so get involved!
If you would like to get involved at one of our larger events, there is plenty happening for the rest of 2024! From our annual Moonlight Walk around Chichester in-memory of our loved ones, to our Woof for Wilf dog walk in the Autumn, there are plenty of events to support and fundraise for.
Saturday 25th May
Chichester Pride
Tickets available at chichesterpride.co.uk
Saturday 15th June
Moonlight Walk 2024
Sign up by Monday 10th June
Sunday 11th August
Vintage Fashion Sale
Sunday 15th September
The Big Bathe
Wednesday 9th October
Charity Golf Day at Cowdray
Sunday 20th October
Great South Run 2024
Sign up and fundraise for us!
Sunday 3rd November
Woof for Wilf Dog Walk
Sunday 8th December
Light up a Life at Chichester Cathedral
Thank you to our brilliant community for helping us pay for an extra day of hospice care this leap year.
Whether you shopped in our charity shops, popped a donation in our charity pots, held a coffee morning, or simply shared our JustGiving page with your friends, you’ve made a huge difference to local lives.
A massive thank you to our match funders, George Ide, Lazy Susan and Angela and John Wormald.
If you do end up having to come into St Wilfrid’s, whether for respite or when your time comes, the people here are just amazing. They are an amazing bunch of people.
Sylv, who bravely took on a head shave
Thank you to our 12 high street and online charity shops for getting involved and raising £6,028 to help Pay for a Day. The shops held some brilliant fundraising initiatives, including special sales, opening on extra days, and holding raffles, cake sales, and auctions.
Lyn Bethan, Retail Area Sales and Development Manager
In total you raised... £65,741!
Through fundraising, shopping in our charity shops, and making generous donations, our community raised a total of £39,741, and our brilliant match funders matched the first £26,000.
Thank you!
Here are some of our wonderful community supporters, who are making a difference to local lives. Thank you!
Pam’s Christmas Lights
Super supporter Pam hosted another spectacular Christmas lights switch on, raising £302.60. This could help fund two hours of expert care at home from our Clinical Nurse Specialists.
The family of Victoria Hall-Hulme, who received care from St Wilfrid’s, organised another fantastic Big Bathe event at West Wittering Beach. They raised £60,172 which will be split between St Wilfrid’s and BowelCancer UK.
The dancers at R&B Dance Company danced their way to raising a fantastic £1,405 by holding multiple dance events. This money could fund two days of caring for a patient on our Ward.
Sophie and Leila at Chi Re:Dress raised £503 from donations at their popular Christmas event, selling pre-loved clothing. This could help fund two weeks of patient transport.
Ellie set herself a challenge to run 100 miles in October to fundraise for hospice care. She raised £2,666 which could fund two syringe drivers to give continuous, effective pain relief medicine to a patient.
Local horse-riding Instructor, Shannon, raised £610 for both St Wilfrid’s and Riders Minds Equestrian Charity at her show jumping demonstration at Cakeham Stables.
If you would like to let us know about, or would like help with an upcoming fundraiser for St Wilfrid’s, please do get in touch with us:
01243 755184
fundraising@stwh.co.uk
Thank you to the local businesses who have supported us!
We are so grateful to the fantastic businesses who raise funds for their local hospice.
There are many ways to get involved and help fundraise to help us reach the £9million it costs to run our local end-of-life care services each year. Thanks to people like you, we have been caring for the local community for over 35 years.
Could people in your workplace or business join together and do a sponsored challenge? Or maybe you could even choose St Wilfrid’s Hospice as your chosen ‘Charity of the Year’?
Pictured above are four brave team members from Creations Hair Salon in Chichester who took part in the Inflatable 5k at Goodwood, raising £1,030.
If you would like to nominate us as your Charity of the Year then
Thank you to Pebbles Hair Design in Aldwick, Bognor Regis, who held a ‘St Wilfrid’s Afternoon’.
A total of £923.18 was donated from hair services, which could help fund almost two days of care from our Family Services team.
The team at Flansham Park Health Centre raised £1,489 by taking part in the Bognor 10k. This money could help fund a day of care from our Hospice at Home team, looking after patients in their own homes.
Jim Stokes kindly opened up his workshop and invited the public to view the cars, as well as enjoy some refreshments. In total he raised £9,007.67. This could help fund almost two weeks of a patient being cared for on our Ward.
Thanks to our amazing volunteers, we can run our vital hospice care services, offices and shops.
We ended 2023 with a spectacular celebration of our volunteers at the impressive Goodwood House with an afternoon tea.
A huge thank you to Goodwood for allowing us to celebrate in their beautiful surroundings at no charge.
The Big Help Out returns this 7-9th June! Visit our website to find out how you can get involved and pledge to lend a hand for your local hospice.
stwh.co.uk/big-help-out
What is it like to volunteer at St Wilf’s?
We recently spoke to some of our volunteers to find out what they enjoy about volunteering, and some of the reasons they decided to volunteer for their local hospice.
Here are just a few of the lovely responses we received...
I thoroughly enjoy the experience of volunteering in the shop where I feel I am supporting the local community as I serve the customers, ensuring that I provide a friendly and professional manner and approach.
I wanted to be part of the community as I had recently moved to the area, while also doing something to make a difference.
Now I’m retired and have more time I wanted to do some voluntary work. SWH is such a great place, I’m delighted to be supporting it in a small way.
As a volunteer at St Wilfrid’s I feel valued and appreciated. Time and effort is given to training, understanding my role and asking how I feel about my experience as a volunteer.
Shop, donate goods, or volunteer to support St Wilfrid’s and make a difference to local lives.
Every purchase, hour volunteered, and item donated helps to make a real difference to the life of a patient and their family, so thank you for supporting our shops.
Back in the Summer, two of our customers, Annie and Jim, were surprised to find a book with their photo inside at our Chidham Shop!
“We recognised the cover of the book and bought it for our grandson. It was quite a surprise really, and the lady at the desk really found it amazing that we found a book with our picture inside”.
Read Annie and Jim’s full story on stwh.co.uk/stories
Thank you to everyone who supported our shops by purchasing our Christmas Cards last year. In total we raised an amazing £45,535.15.
Gilly from our Selsey shop had a surprise when she stumbled across a 1st edition Winnie the Pooh by A A Milne, first published in 1926. It was sent to our eBay shop and quickly sold for £315, rather than the £1 it was almost sold for!
Sometimes it’s the most beat up looking things that are worth the most money! We all save things to look up on eBay at the end of the day.
- Gilly, Selsey Shop AssistantDo you have any items you would like to donate to our shops? We would love to receive them!
Check out our shop opening times and donation instructions on our website: stwh.co.uk/shop
On Saturday 28th October
2023, volunteers and employees at our Chidham Charity Shop bravely transformed into models for the evening for their very first Charity Shop Fashion Show.
They showcased the incredible, good quality, secondhand clothing
we receive and sell at all of our 12 charity shops. Our wonderful models carefully curated their outfits for the fashion show, which were all items that had been kindly donated by the local community.
Attendees had the opportunity to browse the entire shop after the fashion show, and purchase all of the items showcased on the night.
Guests were even able to browse a special designer section with a selection of specially picked-out pieces. Overall, the event raised a fantastic £1,001 for local hospice care through ticket, raffle, and clothing sales.
After the success of this event, we are hoping to include more fashion shows in our upcoming calendar of events.
It was great to see the local community come together to celebrate secondhand fashion, and it was a pleasure to showcase the array of high quality, pre-loved clothing that we receive at St Wilfrid’s. A huge thank you to our employees, volunteers and models.
Theresa Hall - Shop Manager
We are pleased to introduce you to philanthropist Michael Scott, who has been generously donating to St Wilfrid’s Hospice for several years through his furniture business, Lazy Susan.
Q. What motivated you to first give to St Wilfrid’s Hospice?
A. Lazy Susan is based in Chichester and Portsmouth. We are keen to support local causes, so it made sense that we look for charities in West Sussex and Hampshire. I live in Bosham and I can remember going to the Walton Lane site as an 8-year-old when it was a pick-your-own strawberries farm, and I have observed the fantastic building that has been constructed by St Wilfrid’s on this great location.
Q. What is your philosophy around your giving, and what do you hope to accomplish as a philanthropist?
A. Back in 2015 I thought it would
be a good idea for my business to donate a percentage of our profits every year to charitable causes and we launched our Lazy Susan ‘Do Some Good’ campaign. This has evolved into a goal of donating £1m by 2027. So far we have donated more than £430,000, which for a small business of about 20 colleagues is a pretty decent effort.
Q. What other philanthropic ways do you think people can get involved with a cause, aside from giving money?
A. It is maybe easier for some people to give money than it is to give time. I believe that volunteering is a fantastic idea as you can do this individually or
as part of a small group with family, friends or colleagues.
Q. What does ‘success’ mean to you?
A. Having all of my colleagues united in the goal of donating £1m on behalf of Lazy Susan is success to me because it shows that all of us are committed to doing more than just providing a great products and a great service; we want to help the communities that we live in and around the world.
Q. What would your advice be to people who would like to give philanthropically but don’t know where to start?
A. Just start today or this week and try to have a goal. This will help to make the giving of your time or money into a habit. It does not have to be a big commitment. Anything will do, but just start today, it will be the best thing that you do.
Q. Have your values and beliefs influenced the way you run your business?
A. At Lazy Susan we have developed a shared set of values with the whole team and these very much influence how we operate. We have shared these with our suppliers, for example we have asked all the colleagues at GPMD (our Web Agency) to nominate a charity, and Lazy Susan then donates £1,000 for their chosen cause.
Q. Is there anyone in your life who inspired you to give to charity?
A. I suppose my reading has educated me that many companies and individuals are very committed to helping others, rather than just making a financial return for the shareholders. This has inspired me to try to build a business with a social conscience. stwh.co.uk
Gifts from philanthropists help fund our cause of making sure terminally ill people and those close to them have free access to the care, support and advice that they need. Philanthropic donations mean we can plan for the future and support local people when they need it most.
If you are considering supporting St Wilfrid’s with a gift, please get in touch with our Philanthropy team:
Always in our thoughts, forever in our hearts.
We believe in remembering our loved ones after they have died, as it can be comforting and help us in our grief. We understand that you might like to think of how you would like to remember your loved ones, and to celebrate their life and legacy.
At St Wilfrid’s, we offer a number of ways to help you remember and pay tribute to a loved one. Some of the options will also help raise funds for local hospice care, so that we can continue to provide end-of-life care and support to other patients and their loved ones.
You can create an online memory page to remember someone you love. A memory page is quick and easy to set up, and is a special place where friends and family can leave a message, light a virtual candle, add memories, photos, videos, and music.
You may find comfort in sharing a photo or a story in our online memory garden. Whether it’s a birthday, anniversary, Christmas, or you’re just thinking about someone you miss, take ten minutes to reflect and add a story or tribute to our garden.
Your gift in memory of a loved one can also help other patients and their families and loved ones, by helping us continue to provide our vital end-of-life services to the local community.Amba Ince - Individual Giving Fundraiser
Located next to the Ward, our Memory Tree is somewhere you can make a dedication to a loved one and visit as often as you like. You can purchase a bronze, silver or gold leaf which can be personalised with an inscription to honour and celebrate them.
To find out more and make a dedication, please contact us on:
01243 755184
fundraising@stwh.co.uk
stwh.co.uk/in-memory
St Wilfrid s Hospice
to Give £1 per ticket!
Mr Skinner was our lucky £1,000 winner in our Winter Raffle 2023! Could you be our lucky winner this Spring? Sign up to our raffle draw for only £1 per ticket.
stwh.co.uk/raffle
Just for fun...
Complete our word search and figure out which word is missing. Email us your answer for the chance to win a £20 Charity Shop Gift Card that can be used in our charity shops.
Please send your answer to marketing@stwh.co.uk . Entrants
years or over. Terms and conditions apply, visit stwh.co.uk/wordsearch
I’ve left a gift in my Will to protect the future of my local hospice and my loved ones.
Cindy from Bognor Regis
Thanks to people like you who leave a gift in their Will to St Wilfrid’s, your generosity funds a quarter of our expert end-of-life care from your local community hospice.
Get in touch and find out more about writing a Will and how to leave a gift in your Will to St Wilfrid’s
01243 755184
fundraising@stwh.co.uk