Afternoon tea for former Lady Mayoress goes down a treat
Former Lady Mayoress of Canterbury, Jenny Yonge, was invited to the Pilgrims Hospice Therapy Centre in Canterbury on 13 July for a special afternoon tea. The event was attended by staff and trustees from Pilgrims Hospices and Porchlight, the two local charities chosen to benefit from a year of fundraising by the Lady Mayoress’ Charity.
It was a chance to gather together and thank the former Lady Mayoress for her generosity and incredible fundraising efforts; in total, the Lady Mayoress’ Charity raised £20,000 for each charity. For Pilgrims, this will go a long way in helping to ensure that vital, compassionate care can continue to be provided to local people and families who are living with incurable illness.
We’re delighted that Jenny chose to support Pilgrims as one of her chosen charities during her year as Lady Mayoress. The money received by Pilgrims will ensure that we can support patients in east Kent who are living with a terminal illness, as well as their family and loved ones, when they need us the most.Leila Ilkhan, Pilgrims Hospices’ Community Fundraising Manager for Canterbury
Throughout 2017 / 18 the Lady Mayoress’ Charity organised a variety of fundraising activities and events in aid of Pilgrims and Porchlight. These included auctions, raffles, charity dinners, collections at the Marlowe Theatre, a bridge night and flower arranging along with several special events:
- Shopping evening at Crabtree & Evelyn
- Strawberry tea afternoon
- Pamper days at Canterbury College
- Concert by the City of Canterbury Chamber Choir
- Dusk safari at Port Lympne Reserve
This fantastic year of fundraising culminated with an epic bike ride from Calais to Brussels via Bruges and Antwerp. Pilgrims’ Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Richard Davis, joined 34 others on the ride, which covered a total of 180 miles.
Leila Ilkhan, Pilgrims Hospices’ Community Fundraising Manager for Canterbury, said: “We’re delighted that Jenny chose to support Pilgrims as one of her chosen charities during her year as Lady Mayoress. We are in awe of her fantastic fundraising efforts and congratulate her on raising such an incredible amount of money for both Pilgrims Hospices and Porchlight. The money received by Pilgrims will ensure that we can support patients in east Kent who are living with a terminal illness, as well as their family and loved ones, when they need us the most.
Asked why she chose to support the two local charities, Jenny said, “My friend’s husband was cared for by Pilgrims; I was so impressed by the 24/7 care they received and the way they were both supported.
“We chose Porchlight because we wanted to support the homeless community, specifically the 17-20 year-old age group – if you can help them make the most of their potential at that point, they’ve got the best chance of getting back on track and developing a bright future.”
Fittingly, Pilgrims and Porchlight have recently started working together to improve end-of-life care provisions for homeless people.
Richard Davis, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Pilgrims, added: “I’m delighted that Jenny chose to support us. I’ve enjoyed working with both Pilgrims and Porchlight over the years, and hope that we can work together with Porchlight in future to improve services for all those who need our joint care.”
