Thames Hospice gives personal thanks to generous Rotary Clubs for their donations

Derek Smith, 24th November 2021

GENEROUS Rotary Clubs across The Thames Valley have been praised for raising money for Thames Hospices' new facility. 

A total of 25 Rotary Clubs who took part in fundraising for the new building alongside Bray Lake have been thanked in person by Thames Hospice.   Between 2019 and 2020, the local clubs raised funds through many varied events to help pay for the garden benches around the Hospice and the outside seating for the Café by the Lake. 

On Monday, 15th November, the Rotary Clubs were finally able to visit the Hospice and hand over the funds raised (note 1), spending some time in the gardens admiring the fantastic new garden furniture. 

Jane Symmons, head of major gifts at Thames Hospice, said: “We are so grateful to all the Rotarians who helped to raise the funds, and everyone who attended the Rotary fundraising events. The gardens are such an important part of the Hospice, supporting the wellbeing of our patients and their families at their greatest time of need as well as our colleagues and volunteers. 

“Our Café is very popular and it’s great to see our local community using the outside space to enjoy some delicious refreshments!” 

Attending the Hospice from Rotary were Frank Quinn (Past District Governor – Rotary District 1090), Past Rotary Club Presidents Chris Davies (Windsor St. George), Leigh Welham (Crowthorne and Sandhurst), David Oliver (Langley and Iver), Andrew Chitty (Maidenhead Thames) and Derek Smith (Cookham Bridge). 

Derek Smith, a former President of the Rotary Club of Cookham Bridge and the project leader on behalf of Rotary in the Thames Valley, said: “It has been a pleasure to support the equipping of the new Hospice premises and to enrol the support of so many nearby Rotary Clubs. 

"The new site is a major enhancement on their previous facilities and secures their position as the major regional provider of full 24/7 Hospice services both for inpatients and for the support of patients at home. 

"After the restrictions of the past 20 months it is very satisfying, at last, to be able to make a proper formal handover of the funds and to wish the Hospice every success in the future. The Rotary Clubs are now involved in a second phase of working with the Hospice, this time focussing on an enhanced training programme for nursing staff.” 

Next Steps

Clubs across the district have continued their support and an application has been submitted to the Rotary Foundation for matched funding. This application is led by Cookham Bridge Rotary and includes funding from a total of 25 local clubs plus some partner clubs in Germany. 

This next step will provide training for staff at the care home. This project is designed to improve the quality of care and support provided to both patients and families by upskilling current nursing staff in the area of general patient care and also in the provision of critical pain relief. 

We hope to hear in the next month or two if this application has been successful.

Note 1: the funds were actually paid to the Hospice in October 2020, but the pandemic meant that the visit and cheque presentation were delayed.

For more information on Rotary Foundation grants visit the Foundation pages. 

Visit Cookham Bridge Rotary website.   

Visit the Thames Hospice website.