Volunteers are giving St Richard’s Hospice a festive boost thanks to answering the call for more people to donate gifts of time in the charity’s shops.
St Richard’s Hospice was encouraging more people to step forward and sign up to their campaign aimed at recruiting 101 volunteers in 101 days to help run the charity’s 17 stores across Worcestershire.
The 101 days has now come to an end and to the delight of the charity, during that time they received 87 new applications and 37 enquiries from new volunteers interesting in working to support St Richard’s Hospice care.
Of these, 45 of the new volunteers working in the shops and warehouse have already donated 925 hours of support to help keep the St Richard’s retail operations running smoothly.
The high street stores are the charity’s face within the community and last year their shops achieved a turnover of £2.4m through the sale of good quality clothes, bric-a-brac, books and furniture donated by local people.
Danny Corns, Commercial Director, said; “We’re delighted that our campaign has attracted so many new volunteers and we are talking to lots more people who have shown an interest. Not only will their volunteering help to make a difference to our patients and families, but they will be at the heart of the community; make new friends, gain new skills and have fun!”
He added, “We realise that many people have a very busy lifestyle but would still like to get involved in volunteering so we are flexible to fit in with their needs. Just a few hours a week in one of our shops, in the short or long term, will make a big difference. Although this particular campaign has finished, we are always keen to recruit new volunteers and would love to hear from anyone who might be interested. Making a New Year’s resolution to volunteer would be a great way to start 2017.”
Anyone able to volunteer is asked to call into their local shop to chat with the manager about the volunteer opportunities available or call Staff and Volunteer recruitment co-ordinator Kirstie Smith on 01905 763963 email
St Richard’s Hospice provides free specialist palliative care for patients living with life-limiting illnesses and supports their families. Each year the hospice team supports over 2,500 patients and family members in Worcestershire with compassion, kindness, dignity and respect.
Patients are cared for in Day Hospice, the 17-bed In-patient Unit or in their own homes by a specialist professional team as well as many trained volunteers.
St Richard’s is an independent charity and is grateful for all donations to help it to continue its work.