Sunflowers blossom into £5,700 hospice windfall
HUNDREDS of sunflowers which brightened up the streets of Rossendale earlier this summer have raised more than £5,000 for Rossendale Hospice.
Throughout the month of July, more than 500 sunflowers were dedicated to loved ones, more than half of which were located in Haslingden, Rawtenstall or Helmshore.
Each sunflower was dedicated to a loved one and was placed in an area of their choice.
Clare Richards, the hospice’s Head of Fundraising, said: “It has been a challenging time for the hospice as most of our events have been cancelled which has had a significant impact on our fundraising income.
“The six events we’ve cancelled would have raised in excess of £65,000 to date. The Sunflower appeal has been our only event so far this year and has raised over £5,700 for the hospice.”
This was the second year Rossendale Hospice had organised the event, which has grown in popularity.
Scheduled during the month of May, the event was postponed for almost nine weeks due to lockdown restrictions.
Clare added: “We were determined to make sure the sunflowers went up as we knew it would bring so much brightness to people’s lives during this challenging time.
“It was heart-warming to hear of the joy families experienced seeing them up and hearing how important it was to them.
“We thank everyone for making a dedication and helping their local hospice raise much-needed funds. The funds raised equate to the provision of 30 days of nursing. We rely on the support of the local community in the best of times so we need the help of the valley even more so today.”
Clare said they would also like to thank the volunteers for all the hours they put in to help with the sunflowers as without their support, the event would not have happened.
It took 25 volunteers to put the sunflowers up, maintain them and take them down over the course of the event.
Many people missed out on the opportunity to dedicate a sunflower to a loved one this year so the hospice is working towards offering something similar as part of its Light Up a Life event at Christmas.
To discover more about Rossendale Hospice, visit www.rossendalehospice. org .