Gainsborough resident Ruth Neller recently won a whopping £1,000 in the weekly St Barnabas Hospice lottery, which she used to purchase a new fence.
Ruth has been supporting the charity via the lottery for years, after having great experiences with St Barnabas through the care that was provided to her parents towards the ends of their lives.
Ruth says: “Over the years I have had several £10 wins, which I have been donating back to the charity, but I could hardly believe it when I had a phone call from the lottery office to let me know that I had won £1,000!
“I was especially happy to win such a large amount because very recently a neighbour has removed a boundary hedge, leaving my sitting room and garden exposed to the view of a whole row of houses. This money has enabled me to have a fence built to restore my privacy (see picture), and I was also able to donate £100 back to St Barnabas.”
Ruth’s father Les had cancer of the bowel and liver, and was cared for at St Barnabas through his final three weeks before his death in September 1994. Ruth and her mother Margaret tried to nurse Les at home, but they felt it was much better for him when he was eventually admitted to St Barnabas.
About this experience, Ruth says: “I was working full time and it was such a relief that I was able to visit whenever I wished, and the staff made us feel so welcome.”
Sadly, within a year Margaret was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and while she was living in her own home, she took part in many of the St Barnabas day centre activities. Margaret especially enjoyed the art classes and was interviewed by BBC Radio Lincolnshire to promote an art exhibition organised by St Barnabas.
When it became hard for Ruth and her family to control Margaret’s pain at home, she too was admitted to the hospice where she died in March 1997.
Ruth comments: “My parents were married for 41 years, and they were both nursed with compassion and love. I was able to visit them and grieve for them, and not feel guilty or worried when I left them to return home.
“Staff alerted my brother and I when their deaths were imminent so that we were able to be there when they died, which was important to me and which I truly believe eased their passings.
“Since the death of my father, I have supported the hospice in a variety of ways as a way of saying thank you, and so that others might benefit from their services. The lottery is one such way.”
For just £1 per week, you can raise funds for your local hospice while being in with the chance of winning up to £1,000, just like Ruth. Members are allocated their own unique lottery number and all prizes are posted to winners, so you do not have to claim a prize manually.
To sign up to play, visit the website: https://stbarnabashospice.co.uk/lottery/
