The Sunday Post: Hospice News

Ł13,000 in the bank already

By Colin Grant
headlead.gif (53 bytes)
OUR CAMPAIGN to raise the money for a new children’s hospice in Scotland has got off to an amazing start.
indent.gif (832 bytes) Thanks to the generosity of readers, not only in Scotland but across the UK, the CHAS office in Glasgow has been inundated with donations and pledges of support.
It means that after just one week of The Sunday Post Schools Hospice Challenge, we’ve already banked nearly Ł13,000, with Ł3000 coming in on Friday alone.
indent.gif (832 bytes) The money started to arrive thick and fast on Monday morning, just 24 hours after we launched the campaign.
Kind-hearted
Among the first of the many kind-hearted donations was one from a Sunday Post reader who wished to remain anonymous. She walked into the CHAS office and handed over Ł1000 in Ł20 notes.

hospice naiomi.jpg (33979 bytes)

Naomi, her parents Mandy and Grahame and big sister Chloe were all thrilled when
Ewan McGregor visited her at school.

indent.gif (832 bytes) Throughout the week hundreds of people have contacted CHAS, including a five-year-old boy called Robbie who wrote, “My granny Betty and gran Evelyn both gave me Ł1 this weekend. I’m saving up to go to Disneyland but I would like you to have my pocket money for the boys and girls.”
indent.gif (832 bytes) Families, too, have rallied to the cause.
Mandy and Grahame McKay, from Lossiemouth, have a very special reason to support our Hospice Challenge. Their daughter Naomi is the only child in Scotland who suffers from Giant Axonal Neuropathy, a very rare disorder which affects her central nervous system.
indent.gif (832 bytes) The seven-year-old is generally weak and unable to walk. She needs to be fed through a tube in her stomach.
For the past three years she has been attending Rachel House and she loves it. Mandy says, “We have to agree 100 per cent with The Sunday Post when you say that Rachel House Children’s Hospice is a great place with wonderful staff and facilities.
indent.gif (832 bytes) “We go down to Kinross three times a year. We know we’re all going to be well looked after and that Naomi is in safe hands.
“Inside Rachel House she enjoys drawing pictures in the art room.
“The Jacuzzi is relaxing for her, and also for myself, Grahame and our other daughter, Chloe (9).
indent.gif (832 bytes) “Life at home can be very stressful with having to care for Naomi on a 24-hour basis as well as keeping family life running smoothly. It’s nice to switch off for a week at a time and enjoy a relaxing break knowing that Naomi is being well taken care of.
“We’ve never been lucky enough to be at Rachel House when celebrities have been visiting, but we’ve seen the photos on the wall of Sharleen Spiteri and Ewan McGregor.
indent.gif (832 bytes) “And when Ewan was in Lossiemouth last December to turn on our Christmas lights, CHAS arranged for him to visit Naomi at her school. The children were mesmerised!”
Mandy and Grahame sent a cheque to our Hospice Challenge on behalf of Naomi as a thank you for supporting such a worthwhile cause.
indent.gif (832 bytes) Yes it’s been a good first week — but there is still a long way to go. We need as much support as possible from our kind-hearted readers.
If you want to get involved, either by making a donation or by raising money through sponsorship or community projects, we’d love to hear from you.

You can e-mail us at: hospice@sundaypost.com