Latest news from your local Hospice…
We are delighted to be sharing the latest edition of St Clare News with you today. If you haven’t seen our latest newsletter already, please see the bottom of this page for a link to read the newsletter online. You can also sign up to receive future mailings here too which will keep you up to date our fun and exciting events, stories from local people and easy ways you can support our nurses and doctors.
In this edition, you will read how your donations have helped make a huge difference to people in your local community facing such difficult journeys.
As St Clare only receives limited funding from the NHS, we rely on our local community to help raise money to fund our hospice. Together, we need to fundraise over £8,500 each and every day to make sure St Clare can continue to care – see how you can get involved this year in our latest Hospice News.
Any donation you can give today will directly help people like Isobel’s dad, Stephen, to receive care at home. Please read their story below.
Isobel’s Story…
My dad was one of my best friends. We had the same sense of humour and we were very close. If I had a problem, I went to my dad. If I needed advice, I went to my dad. And then when he was diagnosed with a brain tumour, I had to quit my job and become his carer overnight. I was just 21 years old.
We were absolutely devastated by his diagnosis, but as soon as we were put in touch with St Clare, they scooped us up, and told us everything we needed to know. Everything that we were thinking, they were already ten steps ahead. And every question we asked, they were there to answer.
Can you give a gift today to help St Clare Hospice provide their specialist, kind and compassionate care for more people like my dad, Stephen? Any amount you give will make such a huge difference to so many local families like mine.
My dad was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2017. With the help of medication, he was able to continue with his normal life. Then in 2021, we noticed that Dad started to walk differently and he also had two car accidents in the space of six months, and he’d never had an accident before.
We assumed that his Parkinson’s medication would just need reviewing, and all would be fine again. However, much to our surprise, we were told that Dad had stage four brain cancer.
Sadly, there are still families in our local communities who are experiencing these devastating situations without St Clare’s help. I simply can’t imagine what our experience would have been like without St Clare kindly guiding us through.
It was very important to my dad that we was cared for in the comfort of his own home – so we were relieved when we found out about St Clare’s Hospice at Home service.
Initially my dad wasn’t fond of any one looking after him other than me and my mum – so we cared for him as long as we could, with advice from the nurses. However, after eight months, we soon ran out of adrenaline and were exhausted.
Dad soon came round to the idea of accepting more specialist care from the nurses and he ended up loving the additional help. Dad would have long chats with the nurses and they became like part of the family. We would sit and talk over a cup of tea, they would hold our hands and reassure us every step of the way. They didn’t only care for Dad, they helped me and Mum to cope too.
Dad died at home in November 2022, with his family around him – just 13 months after his diagnosis.
I’m now going through life doing things without him, which is so hard as a 23 year old. St Clare’s GriefLine service was a lifeline for me when I was caring for Dad as I felt like I had started grieving before he had gone – and I know that St Clare will continue to be there for me when I need them.
How you can help
St Clare Hospice relies on your kind donations to run the hospice and to support patients like my dad. Together we need to raise around £8,500 every single day to keep running their vital services.
Anything you can afford to give today makes a massive difference to families like mine. Please kindly complete the form below to donate online.
Yes, I would like to donate today
I can’t thank you enough for caring about your local Hospice. Together we can make sure that no one has to deal with death, dying and loss alone – without the specilist care that St Clare provides.
Warm wishes,
Isobel
Isobel, Daughter of Stephen
Keep up to date with us
If you did not receive the latest St Clare Hospice News please read our online version here.
If you would like to make sure you receive our next edition of Hospice News, and on-going fundraising communications throughout the year, please call our Fundraising Team on: 01279 773 750 and ask to be added to our database. Thank you.