So why are we doing this?  I have elderly grandparents who all needed respite care and day hospice visits.  At a place like Primrose, they are treated with love, respect and the support they need - something I naively thought was easily achievable through the health system we have in place.  

What hit me the most, as a father of 2 little ones, was the specialist support they give to children who have lost someone close to them.  From the NHS this can take months to start which is too long.  It really hit home after my last visit at Christmas where I saw some of the memory boxes the children created, the specialist counselling rooms and the remembrance garden, along with a great Christmas grotto.

Aroq's very own Heather, has kindly shared her story of her Mom who visited the Primrose often:

Two years ago to the day (as I’m writing this) my lovely mom
passed away. She had been battling a horrible illness called Progressive
Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) for a few years, which in short took away everything except her mind, so she knew what was happening to her.  Vile, I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.

During this awful period in our lives there were just a couple of shining lights, The Primrose Hospice being the main one. 

It began when they arranged for her to visit their lovely daycare centre twice a week where she was able to meet and be around other people instead within the same four walls 24/7. It gave her something nice to look forward to and a reason for her to get me and my sister to do her hair and makeup twice a week!  

This also gave my dad two days to be able to leave the house as he was her main carer.

They’d sit and chat to her, paint her nails and be lovely and patient with her whilst helping her to eat/drink as she wasn’t able to do it herself. They also provided counselling for mom and dad (& me and my sister at times) and helped her organise a DNR, which sounds awful, but it was practical and we’d never have thought of it. 

Primrose were also our saviours when (at very short notice) the home carers said they couldn’t help mom at home any longer, her needs were too great. The same day, the wonderful Katie Power at Primrose worked her socks off to find mom the loveliest care home, where she eventually ended her days. 

They showed my mom, me, my sister and father so much compassion at a time when life seemed so dark. We laughed, cried and swore together (it’s me remember...) and whilst I hope none of us ever need their help, their services are so needed but sadly not government funded. They need all the donations they can get to keep on providing care to those with progressive and incurable conditions.

This is why I’m so delighted that Aroq chose this wonderful
charity to support this year & without my influence either. 

I’ll end on something nice..... During moms time visiting
the day care centre they were making new brochures and she ended up on the front page! She’s in the striped top ❤

So please join in supporting this great cause by donating, we'll be doing our bit by jumping 10,000ft out of a plane! 

Big thank you to Aroq for supporting this great cause and to those taking part with me: Sean Clinton, Tom Mellonie, Tom Thorp and Chanelle Richardson.