Hospice Trees of Love shine light for lost ones

A remembrance event paying tribute to lost loved ones has so far raised over £60,000 to support people living with an incurable illness in east Kent.

More than 1,500 people attended Pilgrims Hospices Trees of Love gatherings on Saturday, December 10. Huge donated festive trees were lit up in the gardens in the charity’s Ashford, Canterbury, and Margate hospice grounds, with white paper doves bearing personal messages.

Sara Scriven, Pilgrims Hospices individual giving manager, said: “We would like to say a huge heartfelt thank you to everyone who donated to our campaign and dedicated a dove in memory of their loved ones.

“Sharing thoughts and being part of our hospice family keeps our loved ones firmly in our hearts.

“This is such an incredible amount of money to raise for hospice care.

“Every £500 could pay for a patient bed for a day, so as you can see it will help to make a real difference to our patients and their families.

“Trees of Love wouldn’t be possible without the amazing support of our communities, including the help of so many volunteers who give their time and skills every year to make the events run smoothly.”

There were also earlier Trees of Love services held in Dover and Cheriton, to allow more people to attend.

The Trees of Love and their doves will remain in the grounds of the three Pilgrims Hospices in Ashford, Canterbury and Thanet until the new year for people to visit.

For more information, visit www.pilgrimshospices.org

Pilgrims Hospices’ Trees of Love were decorated with white paper doves bearing messages