“Having grown up in Harlow, I’ve always known about St Clare and the work that they do in the local community helping and caring for people. I’ve always tried to support St Clare, by donating to their shops and things like that.”
“But during the summer of 2016, I got to know St Clare a lot better. My wonderful mother, Kay Warwick, stayed on the Inpatient Unit for two weeks between June and July, and sadly passed away on the 8th July 2016.”
“St Clare was such a lovely place for me and all the family to be with my mum during our last moments together. They created an environment where we could come at any time, and stay as long as we liked, which just meant so much to us.”
“We all invaded Mum’s room for 2 weeks – all 10 of us – and we’d have dinners in the family room and even sleep here, and no one once said that we had to go!”
“Everyone that we met was excellent. The unconditional care and support that they offered my mum was also offered to the rest of our family too, which is what makes St Clare stand out.”
“We could really see that we were here for the care – not just for the medical side of things. The Hospice was just such a calming, nice place to be, and they continued to support me with bereavement counselling sessions afterwards too.”
“My mum, my family and I have all had such great support from St Clare, so I really feel like I want to give something back. That’s why I decided to do a fundraising trek for St Clare in July 2017.”
“I went on my first hike 4 years ago and caught the bug for it – I absolutely loved it! When the opportunity came up to take on the Three Peaks Challenge, I knew it was the perfect way to raise awareness of St Clare, and show people how the care isn’t just for patients, but for their families as well.”
“It’s a massive challenge for me personally, too, as you have to climb Ben Nevis in Scotland, Scafell Pike in England, and Mount Snowdon in Wales – in a total of just 24 hours! I’ve always wanted to do this challenge, and to be able to raise money for somewhere that’s really close to my heart is such a great motivation.”
“There are seven of us doing the Three Peaks Challenge, and we’re all raising funds for St Clare. A lot of people in the community know about the Hospice and want to support it – I’ve even received sponsorship from people who I don’t know personally, but who have donated just because I’m doing it for St Clare! It just shows you how many local people’s lives are touched by our local hospice, and how much our community loves St Clare.”
“I’m excited to take on this challenge, and I’m looking forward to doing it. It just means so much to me, and is a great way to give back to St Clare after all that they have done for me and my family.”
– Matthew