Published on: Thursday 14 Sep 2017 at 09:11
The wonderful Dame Claire Bertschinger DBE DL joins the St Clare team as Patron!
St Clare Hospice has welcomed a new Patron to promote our work supporting local people at the end of their lives. Dame Claire Bertschinger DBE, Deputy Lieutenant of Hertfordshire, has agreed to take on the prestigious role to help raise the our profile in the community and beyond.
Dame Claire Bertschinger DBE, who was honoured as Dame Commander of the British Empire by the Queen in the 2010 New Year’s Honours list for services to Nursing and to International Humanitarian Aid, is best known for her role in highlighting the famine in Ethiopia which led to the 1985 Live Aid campaign. Dame Claire lives locally to the Hospice and was made a Deputy Lieutenant of Hertfordshire in 2012.
Dame Claire is a committed supporter of the Hospice, having witnessed the quality of the care provided to her mother by the charity’s Day Therapy and Community services in 2013.
Dame Claire said:
“I am honoured and privileged to have been asked to become a patron of St Clare Hospice. Having experienced first-hand the love, attention to detail and care of the staff at St Clare, I am delighted to have been given the chance to support them as a Patron.”
“Hospice staff are some of the most special people within the nursing and healthcare sector. Their dedication, warmth, humanity and ability to help a person and their family through one of life’s most difficult journeys, is inspirational. Such special gifts and commitment deserve better recognition and I hope I will be able to assist the caring and committed staff at St Clare by raising awareness of their invaluable work.”
St Clare Chief Executive Sarah Thompson said:
“We are thrilled that Dame Claire has agreed to become our newest Patron. Dame Claire has such a wealth of expertise and experience in the field of Nursing and the Voluntary Sector and will be a wonderful ambassador for St Clare. With Dame Claire’s support we will be enabled to continue to raise the profile of our charity, and highlight the care and support we offer to patients and families in our community.”
