Hospice Garden Party

Date published: 26 August 2005

The sun shone, the wine flowed, the band played and everybody had a great time at the Springhill Hospice Garden Party on Sunday 21st August. The event was held to celebrate the cutting of the first sod for the new extension. Hospice Chairman, Margaret Geoghegan MBE and Jim Dobbin MP joined the Mayor of Rochdale, Councilor Ashley Dearnley, in helping Freda Geldard mark the start of the new project.

It was Freda who was the first to donate to the Building on Friendship Appeal, which aims to raise enough funds in order to build, equip and furnish an extension to the ward area, which will provide 3 individual patient rooms and 2 new en-suite family rooms for relatives who wish to stay at the Hospice and be close to their loved ones.
 
Amongst the 150 who attended were many of the people who have donated to the Appeal through buying plaques on the Friendship Wall. The guests included local dignitaries, Hospice Volunteers, staff, Trustees and Patrons. Suzie’s Little Big Band provided entertainment throughout the afternoon playing Jazz standards.

Ian Jenkins, Fundraising Manager at Springhill Hospice said, “We couldn’t have had a better day for the event. Everybody had a great time and I would like to thank them all for attending and I would especially like to thank my colleagues at the Hospice for helping to put the day on and whoever it was that arranged the weather.”