Charity cards are available to buy from hospice and website
A STUNNING shot of a snowy Kirby Muxloe Castle was the winning snap in this year’s Rainbows Hospice Christmas card competition.
The centre, which cares for children and young people with life-limiting illnesses, runs an annual contest to find a suitably festive photo to feature as the front of its fundraising cards.
For 2017 it was the ethereal beauty of the winterravaged ruins which won the day - a moment in time captured by Ratby mum and grandma Mary Hatfield.
Mary, who ironically works for Loros the adult care hospice, is a keen amateur photographer and had wandered up to the castle to search out photo opportunities following an overnight snowfall.
She recalled: “I wasn’t the first person to walk around the moat - there were other footprints but it was magical and quiet. The trees were glistening. I took several other shots but I knew this would be a good one.
“The red brick of the castle stood out against the white of the snow. There was a covering of ice on the moat which reflected the castle nicely. I framed the picture slightly by using the icy bushes and took the shot.
“It was an instant hit on two photographic Facebook groups I belong to, getting lots of great comments and likes. It was just a lucky shot - I was in the right place at the right time with the skill to take a good photo.
“The snow was all gone by mid-day. I have sold it to a few people on an acrylic and I have it hanging on my wall - it has been very popular and I love it.”
It was a friend who sent her the details of the Rainbows competition and she entered the castle shot and some taken at Bradgate Park.
When she discovered the wintry scene had been chosen she was delighted.
She added: “I was really proud when the cards came through the post at the beginning of September. My prize was five packs of cards. Effectively I have donated the card to a very worthy cause and I hope it raises lots of money.”
Mary lives with her part- ner Paul in Ratby and has three grown-up children and two grandchildren. She has worked for Loros as a health care assistant for 15 years, firstly on the ward and now in the day therapy unit.
She said: “We have my photos on the walls and it cheers the room up. Patients use them for reminiscence - they are all local photos. I have suggested we run a competition rather like Rainbows did to raise the profile of the hospice.”
A Sussex native she has always enjoyed walking and the countryside and began to exercise her passion for photography with a small compact digital.
A one-day course and purchase of her own DSLR followed as her creative ambitions increased and now she says she takes her camera with her everywhere.
“It’s replaced my handbag,” she said.
You can see Mary’s photos on Facebook - photographybymaryhartfield or on Flickr. Rainbows Hospice charity cards are available from the hospice’s website, its shops and through supporters at £3 for a pack of 10.