Category: Hospice News

Donna Fellows is a Clinical Administrator working at the St Barnabas Hospice Inpatient Unit in Lincoln. When she is not working at the Hospice, she is the landlady at the Queen in the West pub! Her pub was one of the first to sign up to the Hospice’s brand-new Pub Quiz initiative to help raise more money for patients, just like the ones cared for by her team.

The Queen in the West has an extra special connection to the Hospice as Donna’s mum Glenis, who was also a landlady in the West End of Lincoln, was cared for in the Inpatient Unit in 2019 and 2020 before she sadly died.

Donna said, “Mum was diagnosed with bowel cancer, which had a devastating effect on the family. The disease was cruel, and the mum we knew and loved completely changed in the last eighteen months of her life. Seeing her suffer was awful, especially when we knew she was in constant pain.

“As Christmas approached, her symptoms increased, and we could see the pain getting worse. That’s when it was suggested for her to go St Barnabas Inpatient Unit. The team there were just wonderful. They reviewed her medication, reassured us all and gave us time to talk about Mum’s illness and the impact it was having on all the family.

“On Christmas Eve we brought Mum home for our traditional family meal, but she was absolutely exhausted by the time we dropped her back off at the Hospice. The staff went above and beyond to make her peaceful that Christmas, dimming the lights and placing special lanterns at the end of each patient’s bed. It was such a gentle, beautiful moment and we all shed a tear knowing that it would be Mum’s last Christmas.

“In her years working behind the bar at her pub and when she visited my pub, Mum adored pub quizzes. She would always help teams out with answers and particularly enjoyed the 60s music round.

“It felt only right that Mum’s story was used for the launch of a campaign based in a pub. We will be holding ours at the Queen in the West early next year, and I hope lots of our friends and regulars come out to join us.

“Mum would be so pleased to see that we are doing this in her honour, and to thank the wonderful people at St Barnabas who cared for her in her hour of need.”

Pubs and social clubs across Lincolnshire are now invited to sign up to host a St Barnabas Hospice Pub Quiz. It is completely free to sign up and each establishment will receive a pack including branded beer mats, quiz sheet, collection pot and posters. Their quiz night will also feature on the Hospice’s website.

To sign up free of charge, visit www.stbarnabashospice.co.uk/pubquiz

St Barnabas Hospice has brought back their popular Rudy’s Run campaign, which last year saw an incredible 69 schools, nurseries and childcare settings sign up free of charge and raise more than £38,000 in sponsorship money.

Settings who sign up will receive a very special visit from Rudy the reindeer as he delivers antlers and red noses around the county. They will also receive a resource pack, including colouring templates, design a tree decoration, reindeer food recipe and a Santa suit for one lucky teacher to wear on the day! Other resources available include a special school assembly video and a letter from the North Pole to share with parents.

This year, Lincoln City Football Club have kindly agreed to donate a signed football shirt which a player will present to a randomly selected setting taking part in Rudy’s Run in the New Year.

Last year, Baillie Boxall (age 7 from Skegness) took part in Rudy’s Run when his school, St Helena’s C of E Primary School, signed up to raise money for St Barnabas Hospice. Baillie did this in memory of his papa and raised an amazing £200.

Alana, Baillie’s mum said, “My dad – Baillie’s ‘Papa’ – was funny and fearless. He was a real family man who adored his grandchildren, always stayed positive and worked hard throughout his life.

“In November 2017, Dad had a stroke which affected him badly. Then in January 2020 he had a fall and we realised he would need end-of-life care. He was initially in hospital, but when the pandemic started St Barnabas supported us to bring him home and care for him.

“The Hospice supported with pain management, amazing support over the phone and a regular team of nurses who came into the house to help us. With the uncertainty during the pandemic, this support really was a lifeline for the family, and it enabled Mum to stay with Dad until the end.

“When Dad passed away, the nurses were incredible. Even though he had gone, they treated him with so much respect and dignity, even speaking to him as they did the final procedures. The care was excellent, and the kindness shown when it was most needed was unforgettable. They allowed us to be a family until the end.”

Rudy’s Run took place in the weeks following Baillie’s papa’s death, and it really struck a chord with Alana’s family. It helped Baillie come to terms with what had happened and gave him something positive to focus on in memory of his papa.

Baillie said, “My best memories of Papa were going on adventures and crawling through bushes on the golf course. When someone is poorly, we have to help them. That’s why I liked raising money for St Barnabas.”

Rudy’s Run isn’t a race, but a chance for children to run, walk or prance to raise vital funds for St Barnabas Hospice.

Registrations close on Monday 29^th November, with packs being delivered in December. To sign up, visit www.stbarnabashospice.co.uk/rudysrun.

Today is #PurpleTuesday, a day which looks to improve awareness of the value and needs of disabled customers. It is a celebration of the  #PurplePound; the fact that disabled people put £274 billion into the economy each year. Showing our support and appreciation for our disabled customers, some of whom are also patients in our care, is of huge importance to us as a hospice.

We appreciate that, like many organisations, there is more we can do to improve accessibility in our charity shops both for people with visible and hidden disabilities. Starting with our brand-new superstore – The Warehouse – we have set out measures to ensure that everyone, including those with disabilities, have a positive shopping experience.

The Warehouse will have disabled parking bays, a ramp entrance, spacious changing room, disabled toilet and low level, ground floor shopping. We have also consulted with our Admiral Nurse Clinical Lead to ensure the shop is suitable for customers with dementia. From his feedback and Alzheimer’s UK guidance, we have included neutral flooring, clear signage and free ‘Dementia Friends’ training for all staff and volunteers.

As a ‘Disability Confident Employer,’ we have adapted our recruitment process to make it more accessible for those with disabilities. This includes a subtitled induction.

We appreciate that some of our older charity shops don’t match these high standards of accessibility, but we pledge to use insight and feedback from opening The Warehouse to advise future charity shop accessibility decisions.

Find our more about The Warehouse at www.stbarnabashospice.co.uk/warehouse-announcement and email any feedback to shops@stbarnabashospice.co.uk.

“Mum always felt that Christmas was a special time to make even more difference to patients and families in her voluntary role at St Barnabas Hospice. I feel touched that her care and dedication was replicated by colleagues when the tables turned, and she was diagnosed with a terminal illness. 

Last Christmas was the first without Mum, so I want to tell you about how St Barnabas made this difficult time of year feel special, even during a pandemic. Mum and Dad have always been at the centre of our family Christmas, so it warms my heart to know that we can still celebrate their lives thanks to St Barnabas’s festive tradition. 

Mum had volunteered for St Barnabas since 1994, working on the Inpatient Unit in Lincoln to support patients and families with cups of tea, friendly smiles and a listening ear during tough times. Many years into this role, my dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer and also spent time at this wonderful sanctuary receiving care. 

After Dad died, Mum carried on volunteering, determined to make a difference wherever she could. But then last year, during the height of the pandemic, I drove her to hospital for some blood tests after she fell ill at home. 

It was so hard watching them wheel her inside without me, but nothing compared to the feeling when the hospital called me and told me she had cancer and it was terminal. I also found out that she had tested positive for coronavirus. It is difficult enough to hear that you are going to lose a parent, but to not even be able to hug and reassure her was devastating.

When I spoke to her, she said “I want to go to St Barnabas; I want to be with my second family.” I made the relevant calls and her colleagues did the rest, giving her a private room to ensure the safety of other patients from the virus. 

It meant absolutely everything to her that she could spend her last few days there, I can’t thank the nurses enough for all they did. St Barnabas cares for people across the county, at both their Inpatient Units and in people’s own homes. I have been blown away to read stories about how they have helped families in all four corners of Lincolnshire, despite the pandemic having such a devastating impact to their finances. 

Mum absolutely adored the Torchlight Procession that St Barnabas organises each Christmas. When my dad was being cared for in the Hospice, the Procession stopped outside and played ‘Amazing Grace’ for the patients to hear. It really lifted his spirits, and I know it will have done the same for many others through the years. 

The year before she died, Mum was asked to share Dad’s story as part of the Hospice’s Light up a Life campaign, and this made her so proud. I feel humbled to now be sharing Mum’s story this year and will be dedicating two extra special lights to remember them both. 

We often make comments as if Mum is still with us, and to an extent, I think she is. I know she will be up there with Dad watching the Torchlight Procession light up the streets of Lincoln, and I know I will feel the same pride that she did as I carry their torch to the Tree of Life along with hundreds of others. 

This Christmas, please join me in remembering your loved ones in a celebration of light. I am inviting you to dedicate your light for a loved one so they can shine brightly on St Barnabas Hospice’s beautiful Tree of Life outside Lincoln Cathedral. A donation of just £68.72 would pay for a doctor to spend time working out a personalised pain relief medication plan for a patient.

You can remember anyone with a light, not just those cared for by the Hospice. As a thank you and token for your loved one, St Barnabas will send you a personalised card and special tree decoration in the post. You will also be invited to attend the Torchlight Procession in November, either at the in-person event or via a virtual service. 

Your donation for a light could pay for more people like Mum and Dad to receive specialist end-of-life care during the most difficult of times. It could help St Barnabas care for more people long into the future as they face the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic and the increase in patients needing their care with complex illnesses. 

Because of the wonderful people at St Barnabas, I was able to spend Mum’s last moments with her safely, despite the pandemic. I thanked her for being the best mum and for all she had done for everyone. She just squeezed my hand and said, “thanks for sorting this.” I know it meant the world to her to die at St Barnabas. 

Please join me in shining a light to remember someone special this Christmas. Lincolnshire has lost so many loved ones during the pandemic, but I know that remembering them and celebrating their lives, will help lift some of that apprehension that we are all feeling about spending Christmas without them. To dedicate a light, please go to: Light up a Life – St Barnabas Hospice

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my story. 

Best wishes, 

Steve Norton 

St Barnabas Hospice supporter  

Dedicate a light

An appeal to help build a new wellbeing hub with treatment and therapy rooms, a garden, and a lounge and kitchen in Boston by St Barnabas Hospice has already hit nearly £70,000 thanks to generous donations.

The Hospice launched an appeal just a month ago to raise almost a quarter-of-a-million pounds (£234,250) to fund the essential works.

Head of Wellbeing Services at the hospice, Mandy Irons, said: “We are delighted by the public support given to the Boston Wellbeing Hub; in total to date we have raised £63,958 in much-needed donations from the public.

“We hope these donations will soon reach £100,000, as a very generous Charitable Trust has agreed to match-fund up to this amount.

“With a total of more than £40,000 received in gift aid and grants, this added to the public donations brings the overall figure raised to £104,736. We are confident our appeal total of £234,250 will be reached in the coming months.”

Mandy added: “We’re really excited to see so much being raised already. Novak House as we’re calling the new development will truly  be a community hub for Boston and the south east of the county. With the project being well on the way, it’s going to be a welcoming environment that doesn’t feel clinical. It’s really going to encompass a holistic approach and not just for palliative care patients but their families too. The installation of a counselling room for example is something we’ve not been able to deliver outside of Lincoln until now.”

The facility, at Endeavour Park, will provide a range of therapies to people in south Lincolnshire, and provide a base for the charity’s hospice at home care team. It would also be available for use by other organisations providing care and support to palliative patients and their families.

In 2019 a local philanthropist Stefan Novak left a £393,000 legacy to be spent on caring for those in the south of Lincolnshire, which has funded around half of the building named Novak House in his honour.

This would be spent on therapy and treatment rooms and a beautiful garden for activities including therapy groups, exercise sessions, counselling and social events.

Mandy continued: “This is going to very much be a community resource. The holistic approach is shown by the spiritual and psychological elements that will be included in what we offer and the extension of the space for use by Young Carers and Carers First will also mean we have a more cohesive link to health and the community locally too. It’s going to be a very collaborative and open space.”

The funding would also see the creation of a new lounge and kitchen called Rosie’s, named after cherished St Barnabas colleague Rosie Wood who died from coronavirus.

Before the pandemic, the Boston clinical team operated from an ageing bungalow in Green Lane that was much loved but but didn’t offer the space needed to deliver palliative services.

To find out more information or make a donation towards the build, visit www.stbarnabashospice.co.uk/bostonappeal

Over the past two weeks, our retail shops have been getting stuck in with all things ‘Bake off Mania’ by getting involved in the St Barnabas Bakeoff Window display competition!

It has been very difficult to judge these entries. All our shops that entered did very well and there were many great displays of originality, resourcefulness, and collaboration! However, there must only be one winner…

All entries were judged out of a score of 10 in three categories, originality, composition, and theme, making 30 points the maximum number of points possible.

In third place… Mablethorpe! Caroline and her team did a brilliant job using the items they had available to bring us a great display full of British Bake-off iconography, bric-a-brac and most impressive of all, an edible bread loaf. A great display of originality. Well done!

In second place… Nettleham Fields! Well done to Debbie and her team on capturing the true bake-off theme through a brilliant use of the items available to you. The display is well composed and sure did do the trick! The best part of the display of course must be the selection of cupcakes that were available for customers to enjoy! Great job once again!

And in first place we have … Lincoln High Street North! A massive congratulations to Louise and team on arranging a beautifully composed, colour rich display that is very true to the theme yet brings in all the vintage elements that your store is so popular for. You have all truly captured the Bake-off mania!

Congratulations to all the winners, your prizes will be arranged shortly. A huge well done and thank you to all the shops that took part. This competition brought all our shops together with all things Bake-off and resulted in some brilliant displays that not only looked incredible but also enticed customers into our shops and resulted in several purchases and donations being made in support of our hospice, which is what the shops are for.

See below to see all the winner’s window displays!