A rocking good way for us all to help CHAS       

By Sarah Johnson WE know our readers are eager to help the children who rely on Rachel house. Your response to our appeal to help build a new hospice has proved that.  But not everyone can take part in a sponsored run or some of the other strenuous activities fundraisers have undertaken since our campaign started. Everyone can send Christmas cards, though. It’s only a couple of weeks until we’ll all start posting cards to family and friends, sending our love and best wishes for the festive period and the New Year.

Claire with the original painting she  gifted to CHAS.

By choosing to send cards from the CHAS Christmas Collection you can spread the goodwill even further. And you’d be directly helping children who might be seeing their last Christmas. Acclaimed One of the many cards they have in the hospice’s information centre at Kinross is rather special. It features two colourful rocking horses, entitled Rachel and Robin, painted by acclaimed Scots artist Claire Harrigan, from Ayr, who paid a visit to Rachel House to donate the original painting to CHAS.  Claire was born in Kilmarnock, and grew up in Ayr, where she still lives, in a house full of painters. She was delighted to share an exhibition with her father, esteemed artist James, in 2001. A graduate of Glasgow School of Art, Claire had her first solo exhibition in 1991 at the Gatehouse Gallery in Glasgow where she has exhibited regularly since.  Other solo exhibitions have been at the Christopher Hull Gallery and Bruton Street Gallery in London and The Open Eye Gallery in Edinburgh, winning awards for her paintings.  Her work is rich in colour as she uses a mixture of acrylic and oil pastel, allowing her to produce bright and colourful creations. The painting is currently proudly hanging in the gift shop in Kinross for all the customers to admire before being moved to the hospice reception area.  Claire said, “I was approached by a founder member of CHAS, Sheila Borthwick, in February and asked to design a Christmas card. “I painted three or four ideas and Rachel and Robin was chosen. It was significant because there were two rocking horses and with Robin House being built it was decided the image was symbolic of the future. “It’s about 15 inches square, so it’s fairly small and I gifted it to CHAS so they can use it whenever they want. It’s not only a Christmas image so can be used at any time.  “The painting is personal to the charity. I used blue because it’s a calm and restful colour.  Different “I wanted to do something different, a new beginning to symbolise Robin House.  “I was so pleased to be asked, it was lovely to be able to help such a caring, worthwhile charity and I’d be happy to do more in the future.” Claire is expecting her first child next month and is now winding down while preparing for the happy arrival. Fund-raising manager Barbara Osborne said, “The charity’s logo is a rocking horse, so Claire’s painting is highly symbolic to us.  “It will bring great joy to the children and families who use Rachel House.  “Although the original painting is very valuable, people can buy a likeness on a Christmas card for just £4.95 per pack.” All cards are available to Sunday Post readers by mail order. They come in packs of 10, costing between £2.50 and £5. If you’d like more details please contact The Children’s Hospice Information Centre, 23 Avenue Road, Kinross, KY13 8EP. Alternatively, you can phone 01577 865557 or fax 01577 865005 for a brochure or log on to www.chas.org.uk  or e-mail Anne Buchan on anne@chas.org.uk  The full profit from every card sold through The Sunday Post will go to our CHAS appeal. Next

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