A fundraising campaign at Lincolnshire Co-op has boosted the funds of nine local hospice charities, which were chosen as the society’s Community Champions from March to May.
The awareness and fundraising drive brought in £144,000, with hundreds of the society’s colleagues joining a sponsored pedometer challenge.
Teams from across the business area also got together to complete organised walks, including food store colleagues completing a 12k trek along the Cleethorpes coast and a team from head office walking 20 miles around each Lincoln food store.
Generous holidaymakers donated £1 to the cause every time they booked a trip at one of the co-op’s 13 travel branches, adding thousands to the total.
And every time a member shopped in a Lincolnshire outlet using their dividend card, a donation was added to the fundraising pot, alongside proceeds from the carrier bag charge and staff fundraising.
Community engagement manager Sam Turner said: “We’re over the moon that communities have come together to raise such a fantastic amount of money for these truly worthwhile causes.
“Not many people know about the work that hospices do for people who are facing a really difficult time. The groups we worked with have shared inspirational and uplifting stories of the care they provide, because hospices are much more than just a place to die. We’re proud to support their work and message.”
A presentation took place at Olsen Park in Lincoln, where representatives from each hospice collected their portion of the £144,000 donation.
St Barnabas Hospice received a donation of over £104,000 that will be shared between its Lincoln, Louth, Gainsborough, Grantham and Spalding services.
Veronica McBain, head of fundraising and marketing for St Barnabas, said: “It’s breathtaking to have received something of that magnitude. It equates to over 850 hospice-at-home visits, which means our nurses can go in to patient’s homes and deliver the hands-on care that’s important at the end of life – which many patients want these days.
“It’s because of the community shopping at their local stores and other fundraising efforts that Lincolnshire Co-op has been able to deliver this. It is absolutely out of this world.”
