Fund-raisers turn the day orange to help hospice

A 75-MILE bike ride, a bath of baked beans and a quiz helped raise the profile of the vital work carried out by a Staffordshire hospice.

All three events took place on Orange Wednesday to help St Giles Hospice raise awareness of its work in the community.

Families, friends and businesses from across the region joined forces to help turn Wednesday, April 3, bright orange in aid of St Giles, which supports people living with terminal illnesses.

Everything from orange bakeoffs and quizzes to sitting in a bath of beans was on the menu to help fund-raise throughout the day – but the annual event isn’t just about raising money.

Ian Leech, community engagement manager at St Giles, who lives in Branston, cycled 75 miles between the charity’s four sites from Whittington to Sutton Coldfield, Walsall and Uttoxeter to help spread the word.

He said: “The work we do in our community is so important and so fantastic that I want to do everything I can to raise awareness of it. People don’t realise that St Giles is so much more than just a building.

“Our services also give people dealing with bereavement and loss the support that they need, at home, in the community and at work. We provide a ‘safety net’ for people through our 24/7 advice and referral support line and bereavement help points and our work with schools, organisations and communities to encourage open conversations about death and dying.”

St Giles offers a whole range of physical, practical and emotional support free of charge for people living with potentially-terminal illnesses or people who are grieving in Staffordshire.

Emma Hodges, chief executive officer at St Giles, said “It’s been great to see all the weird and wonderful ways people have found to go orange for us and we’d like to thank everyone who joined in and made the day such a huge success.”