A Cheshire hospice says it has received a much-needed funding boost following two festive fundraising events at the end of last year.
St Luke’s Hospice has hailed the success of two of its festive fundraisers – the Elf Run and Christmas tree collection.
Together, the two events brought in more than £80,000 for the charity.
The Elf Run is aimed at schools and nurseries, and is a festive fun run which involves children getting ‘fit and elfie’ over the Christmas period.
This year, over 10,000 children from 54 schools helped raised more than £40,000 by taking part in the fun run.
St Luke’s community partnerships manager, Angela Slack said: “We are so pleased with all the schools that took part in our Elf Run.
“It really is an incredible achievement considering the frosty conditions in the run up to Christmas but the children seemed to really enjoy it.”
The Elf Run has been going for five years, and has now raised more than £200,000 for the charity.
The Christmas tree collection is another annual scheme operated by the hospice which offers supporters the opportunity to dispose of their Christmas tree in return for a donation to St Luke’s.
This year the campaign has helped raise £48,000.
St Luke’s head of events, Jane Thompson said: “The Christmas tree collection is a brilliant fundraiser because it not only acts as a fundraiser for patient care but also provides a service to our supporters by responsibly disposing of their tree.
“This year has been yet another fantastic result and we’d like to thank all those that donated, as well as those who volunteered to collect the 3,116 trees over 4 days.”
St Luke’s Hospice cares for adults living in mid and south Cheshire who are suffering from cancer and other life limiting illnesses.
The hospice also supports family members – including children and carers who are affected by the diagnosis.
St Luke’s is funded by voluntary contributions, and has to raise more than £8,000 per day to provide free care and support.
For every £1 donated to St Luke’s Hospice, 85p is spent on patient care.
