ISC campaign Gardenparty
(L – R) Jane Edwards from HCNCF with Rachel Welsh and Judith Samuel

£3,000 boost for ISC campaign

An ongoing campaign to raise £714,000 to develop an innovative centre for people with life-limiting illnesses has been given a £3,160 boost thanks to the generosity of a Morris dancing troupe and a special garden party with a focus on health and wellbeing.

During the past month, Halesworth Community Nursing Care Fund (HCNCF) has been presented with two cheques towards its information and support centre (ISC) appeal, taking the total raised so far to £477,000.

£1,100 was donated by the Rumburgh Morris Dancers, who held collections at events throughout the summer, while a further £2,060 was presented to the charity by Rachel Welsh and local reflexologist Judith Samuel, who organised a special garden party at Elder Hall in Peasenhall.

Rumburgh-Morris
Rumburgh Morris presenting Ted and Jane Edwards from HCNCF with a cheque

Dave Pring, from Rumburgh Morris, said: “Rumburgh Morris are very pleased and proud to have supported HCNCF this year as it’s such a worthwhile and far-sighted local organisation. Our thanks go to the many generous audiences throughout our summer dancing season who threw their hard-earned cash into our collecting bucket.”

At the garden party in Peasenhall, visitors were given the chance to enjoy complementary therapies such as reiki, massage and reflexology, while a colour consultant was also available to advise people on what colours would suit their skin tones.

A variety of games took place, including guess the weight of the pig and pin the tail on the alpaca, while a range of refreshments were on offer, including gluten-free and low GI options. Entertainment was provided by an acapella group called The Treble Clef.

“Part of my job involves supporting people with cancer, before, during and after treatment, so I appreciate the impact which it can have,” said Rachel, who works as a homeopath. “At the moment, people need to travel a long way to get the support they need, so I was really pleased when I heard about HCNCF’s plans to create a local centre for people from east Suffolk and south east Norfolk.

“We had a healing area at the garden party, with lots of different things on offer as therapies can have a really big impact on people’s wellbeing. Education is also really important to us, so both Judith and I were really pleased that we were able to give people the chance to try different foods and low GI or gluten-free versions.

“I’m really grateful to everyone who helped organise the party and donated either their time, refreshments or prizes.”

The money will be put towards the ISC, which aims to bring a full range of holistic services closer to home for patients with cancer and other life-limiting illnesses, their families and carers. This includes benefits advice, wig-fitting, children and family support, complementary therapies, help understanding a diagnosis, counselling and bereavement support.

Ted Edwards, ISC chairman, said: “We are really grateful to Rumburgh Morris and to Rachel and Judith, who have so generously given their time to help raise funds for our charity. We would like to thank everyone who went to the garden party or supported the dancers during their summer programme.

“These generous donations take the total raised for the project to £477,000. This is brilliant news and takes us one step closer towards realising the dream of creating this fantastic facility for people living in north east Suffolk and south Norfolk, who currently need to travel much further afield to access the sort of help and support we hope to provide at the ISC.”

For more information about the ISC project, or to make a donation, visit www.halesworthhealth.org/information-and-support-centre

Halesworth Community Nursing Care Fund is a local charity (charity number 1155419) which was set up 25 years ago to support people with life-limiting illnesses who wish to die in the comfort and security of their own homes. It works alongside the NHS and social services to provide extra equipment and 24 hour care in the last days of life along with emotional, physical and practical support at the time when people need it the most.For more information, please visit www.halesworthhealth.org/nursing-care-fund, ‘like’ us on Facebook at “information and support centre fundraising campaign” or follow us on Twitter @Suffolk_ISC

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