A GRATEFUL bereaved woman has chosen a hospice charity in Coventry and Warwickshire for a ‘vital’ donation in memory of her dad.
The Myton Hospices – which delivers compassionate end-of-life care at its facilities in Coventry, Rugby and Warwick – has received £10,000 from the Reed Foundation, part of recruitment business The Reed Group.
Every week, a Reed employee is drawn randomly to nominate a charity of their choice to receive a donation. This time around, it was recruitment specialist Kayleigh Hersey, for whom the charity is close to the heart.
Kayleigh said: “Over two years ago, my dad Paul was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and given four months to live. He told us he did not want to go to a hospice or hospital but wanted to stay at home. The Myton Hospices enabled us to do this.
“They sent carers out three times a day to help make him comfortable at home and, as horrible as it sounds, to die there. We’re a big family. I have five brothers and sisters, and we were all able to be there on his last breath.
“For dad, being at home was the number one thing. The fact the charity could do that for us left a great memory for him, that in his dying days he could be at home, and for us as a family that we could be with him.
“Towards the end, he couldn’t speak but he wrote some of the carers a letter to say thank you for everything. They were invaluable for him.”
Kayleigh said the charity also provided vital counselling and emotional support for her family.
Since her dad’s death, her family have been fund-raising for The Myton Hospices, including her mum taking part in three running events.
“This money will be life-changing for people,” Kayleigh added. “This will enable the charity to get more staff, provide more support and to reach out of more people in the community.”
As a charity, The Myton Hospices needs to raise £11million of the £14.3million it costs to continue providing its services free of charge.
Charlotte Ingram, Myton’s Director of Income Generation and Supporter Engagement, said everyone at the charity was incredibly grateful for the donation, and to Kayleigh for nominating it.
She added: “We have recently launched our urgent appeal to raise £240,000 to fund the recruitment, training and salary of five registered nurses for a year to ensure more people can access a hospice bed when they need it.
“Support like this from our local community is vital in helping us care for as many people as possible living with life-limiting illnesses. Our Myton at Home team supports people in their own homes and helps to ensure they can die at home if that is their wish, like Kayleigh’s dad, Paul.
“On behalf of everyone at The Myton Hospices, we’d like to say a big thank you to Kayleigh and the Reed Foundation for helping us continue providing essential palliative and end of life care for people across Coventry and Warwickshire.”
