Please help us out – on the double!
THERE are just days to go until the launch of this year’s The Big Give Christmas Challenge, which Queenscourt will be taking part in for the first time ever.
This national fundraising initiative is the UK’s biggest online matchfunding campaign which sees donations doubled – up to a limit.
The challenge will run for a week with online donations only from noon next Tuesday, December 1, until Tuesday, December 8.
Thanks to our main pledger, the Community Link Foundation, and our Big Give Champion, The Reed Foundation, all donations up to the value of £5,750 will be doubled.
We are hoping that with your help we’ll be able to raise a total of £11,500 towards new dementia-friendly beds.
At Queenscourt we are committed to providing patients with dementia the same palliative care as those with other life-limiting illnesses and are committed to enhancing the care of our dementia patients.
Ongoing feedback from service users, our staff and volunteers has highlighted the need to make our ward area more dementia-friendly.
As a result, we aim to replace 11 older beds with high quality, dementia-friendly ones which will greatly enhance the experience of inpatient care for all of our patients, but particularly those with dementia.
Patients with dementia and Alzheimer’s may sleep more during the day and find themselves less restful at night as they feel disorientated, which is why it’s vital they have the appropriate bed.
With their low height setting and cut-out side, the new beds will improve both patients’ safety and comfort, offering protection from rolling out of bed and reducing the risk of injury when getting out of the bed.
Judith Stewart, Queenscourt’s fundraising and lottery manager, said: “We are really excited to be part of this year’s online Big Give Christmas Challenge and are hopeful that supporters, old and new, will spare us a thought and get involved.
“We want to say huge thank-you to the Community Link Foundation who are providing pledge funding and also to The Reed Foundation, who are championing our campaign to enable your donations to be doubled.
“In order to access the £5,750 we have in the matching pot, we need to raise £5,750 in online donations. We hope everyone will give generously this Christmas to help us reach our target and enable us to carry on the work we all feel so passionately about and help to keep Queenscourt in service.
“What a fantastic early Christmas present it would be if we were to meet our fundraising target, or better still beat it. Please help us achieve this if you can.’’
Enda Rylands, chairperson at the Community Link Foundation, said: “Everybody in Southport, Merseyside and the region is fully aware of the amazing work that the team at Queenscourt Hospice provides for the community.
“When we heard about the Big Give and the benefits that replacing all the beds in the hospice would bring we had no hesitation in lending our support, we very much look forward to supporting the Big Give and sharing this fundraising activity amongst our supporters and wish the team at the hospice every success in achieving their targets.’’
Donations can be made online at our Big Give Christmas Challenge page, which will go live for a limited time only from noon on Tuesday, December 1, also known as GivingTuesday and close at noon on Tuesday, December 8.
Last year, GivingTuesday broke a Guinness World Record for the most online donations in 24 hours, with people donating £35m globally.
Online donations raised £6,000 a minute for UK charities with more than 1,400 charities and businesses connecting with the movement.