April’s kind gift in her Will has touched the lives of so many, continuing her legacy of compassion
April was born on April 16, 1934, in Glasgow, Scotland, and passed away on December 16, 2023. She embarked on a remarkable journey in 1958 as a 24-year-old nurse, traveling from Glasgow to Ecuador, marking the beginning of a life filled with overseas adventures.
April
April was known for her practical, no-nonsense demeanour, characterised by thoughtfulness and kindness, which made her an independent woman capable of managing her family while her husband was often away. She was a dedicated nurse, midwife, and later a health visitor, and she volunteered extensively in various charities throughout her life.
April’s adventurous spirit led her to live in diverse places, including Ecuador, Libya, Abu Dhabi, and Aberdeen, adapting to each new environment with resilience and grace.
She was a devoted mother and grandmother, organising her family’s life with efficiency and care. April had a passion for bridge, enjoyed traveling, and was an excellent cook, always ensuring her family was well-fed.
Her life was marked by a strong sense of adventure, a commitment to helping others, and a love for her family. Despite the challenges of dementia in her later years, she remained a cherished figure in her family, remembered for her vibrant and varied life. April’s legacy is one of compassion, adventure, and a steadfast dedication to those she loved.
April didn’t have any direct experience of Pilgrims, however, as a trained nurse, midwife and later a health visitor, she was used to caring for people of all ages, and had some experience of hospices in other areas. After settling in Whitstable in the mid-1990s, she got to know of Pilgrims Hospices as a local charity and chose to support with a gift in her Will.
Pilgrims Hospices provides compassionate, specialist care free of charge to thousands of people in east Kent each year who are living with life-limiting conditions. Support is offered in patients’ homes, in the community, and at our three hospice sites in Canterbury, Thanet and Ashford. We also run a 24-hour advice line.
2nd February 2026
A legacy in colour: Thanet artist donates his life’s work to Pilgrims Hospices
Local artist Carl Stafford has pledged to leave his entire collection of paintings to Pilgrims Hospices in his Will, creating a lasting legacy that will help protect hospice care for people across east Kent.
Carl’s father
When we visited Carl at his gallery-style home in Ramsgate, every wall was alive with colour and surrealist imagination.
Speaking in his gentle Brummy accent, the 61-year-old father of two daughters and grandfather of five shared how his lifelong passion for art – and his personal experience of hospice care – inspired his decision.
Carl’s father was cared for by a hospice many years ago, and the experience has stayed with him.
“The care was just exemplary,” Carl recalls.
“Nothing was too much trouble, and they made the end of his life comfortable and free from pain. They even organised a wedding for him and his long-term partner, which made the end of his life so special for him and those closest to him.
That sparked something within me that made me realise supporting special places such as hospices was really important. This is Hospice Care at its very best.”
Carl’s art is full of expression and dreamlike imagery, influenced by Salvador Dalí, René Magritte and Max Ernst, among others. Through his legacy, he hopes his creative life’s work will help future generations to experience the same compassion, dignity and support that meant so much to his family.
Carl Stafford Art 6
Carl Stafford Art 5
Carl Stafford Art 4
Carl Stafford Art 3
Carl Stafford Art 2
Carl Stafford Art 1
“I’m a very positive person, and by making this legacy, I hope it will help many people in the future to take comfort and support from Pilgrims Hospices,” he said. “I’ve always been inspired by my father, who was a very fine artist. I still treasure a painting he created for me back in the 1970s. I take great pleasure in the thought that my own work will live on and continue to make a difference.”
Carl working in his studio
Carl also draws inspiration from his local area. Living close to where Vincent Van Gogh once stayed and worked in Ramsgate gives him a special connection to art history and his community.
By choosing to leave his body of work to Pilgrims Hospices, Carl is ensuring that his love of art will continue to support others, helping protect the future of hospice care for generations to come.
Securing hospice care for future generations
Pilgrims Hospices care for an estimated 30% of the people who die in east Kent each year, providing free, specialist end-of-life care in their inpatient units in Canterbury, Thanet and Ashford, as well as in people’s own homes. This compassionate, holistic support for patients and families is what hospice care truly means.
Ellie Cane, Individual Giving Manager at Pilgrims Hospices, said:
“We’re so grateful to Carl for his incredible generosity. Every gift in a Will, large or small, helps us to be there for patients and families when they need us most. Carl’s story shows the very special ways people can leave a legacy of care for their community, protecting hospice care for future generations.”
Pilgrims Hospices provides compassionate, specialist care free of charge to thousands of people in east Kent each year who are living with life-limiting conditions. Support is offered in patients’ homes, in the community, and at our three hospice sites in Canterbury, Thanet and Ashford. We also run a 24-hour advice line.
12th September 2025
“I can’t praise the hospice highly enough”: Why David is leaving a gift to Pilgrims in his Will
Pilgrims Hospices cared for David’s wife, Dawn, at the end of her life.
Here, David shares why he has chosen to leave a gift in his Will to Pilgrims.
“My wife, Dawn, battled cancer for 14 years and sadly passed away on 23 July 2024. The service and support that the Pilgrims team provided from the Margate hospice as part of Dawn’s Hospice at Home care package was exemplary. At a time when I was very stressed and highly emotional, the help and understanding that these very kind people gave me was very comforting. My wife was very well cared for and had a perfectly dignified passing and for that I shall be eternally grateful to you.
I would strongly recommend that people should consider leaving something in their Will to Pilgrims Hospices, however small. Pilgrims is a charity, and whilst they do provide a free service to those people who need their help and support at such an emotional time, it shouldn’t be forgotten that it does cost money to actually provide that help and support. They need to continually raise money to continue financing that service.
A personal big thank you for all the help and support that I received from the Pilgrims team. I couldn’t have got through my Dawn’s end-of-life without it. I can’t praise the hospice highly enough.”
–David, Dawn’s husband
Pilgrims Hospices provides compassionate, specialist care free of charge to more than 3,000 people in east Kent each year who are living with life-limiting conditions. Support is offered in patients’ homes, in the community, and at our three hospice sites in Canterbury, Thanet and Ashford. We also run a 24-hour advice line.
5th June 2025
Why I support Pilgrims Hospices: Sarah’s story
“I always imagined hospices were marvellous places, but until I experienced it myself, I didn’t know just how exceptional everything and everyone would be.”
My Dad was a true Londoner – bold, big-hearted and full of life. His voice could fill a room, and so could his warmth. He was so generous with his time and embodied the spirit of community in every way, proudly inheriting the family picture-frame making business ‘Mann & Sons.’ In his later years, he moved to Kent and found real comfort in the slower pace of life and bracing sea air.
After Dad had his stroke, it was heart-breaking to see someone who had always been so strong and independent suddenly become so vulnerable. As his final days were drawing closer, he told me that he wanted to die at home, but this wasn’t possible since he needed too much attention.
In the end, however, I feel very grateful that he ended up in the care of the Thanet hospice. It was the best thing that could’ve happened and from the moment we came through the door, I knew we were in fantastic hands.
The small things will always stay with me: the hand-knitted quilts on each bed, to the radio that appeared in his room after I mentioned his love of listening to it. These thoughtful touches, to me, show the true meaning of care – acts of decency, kindness and generosity given for nothing in return.
Sarah and her dad
There are many touching moments I recall in those difficult days, but the one that sticks in my mind most is sharing Dad’s final sunset with him. He’d asked for this specifically and even though the nurses were busy, at shift’s end, they made the time to attach rollers to his bed and wheel him outside. I sat with him, holding his hand, and we watched the sky turn red. I could see what this meant to him.
Twelve hours later, he lapsed into unconsciousness – I had slept in a chair by his bed until that moment and the nurses brought me a blanket for the night. I carried on sleeping there until the moment he died, and afterwards helped the nurses and volunteers bathe him and dress him in clean pyjamas. Their compassion and respect was astonishing, and after they’d taken him away, they handed me an envelope addressed ‘Sarah’ containing a hand-knitted heart and a poem. I still have them both.
My Dad has been gone close to three years now, but I feel his spirit in everything I do. He passed at 80 and when people say he had a good life – and he really did – it doesn’t lessen the loss. Keeping his memory alive is so important to me, and seeing his name on the Memory Tree really touches me. I wanted to support Pilgrims yearly, and it’s such a wonderful way to do so, on a beautiful installation where his memory is kept alive.
I will never be able to repay Pilgrims Hospices for everything they did – they care for the people sitting around the bed as much as the person lying in it. Leaving a gift to Pilgrims in my Will is my way of saying one final thank you, in memory of my Dad and with deep gratitude for all they did for both of us.
If you’re inspired by Sarah’s story and would like to support Pilgrims Hospices, there are many ways you can:
Each year, Pilgrims Hospices care for thousands of people across east Kent, with services provided from its three hospice sites in Ashford, Canterbury, and Thanet, as well as in patients’ own homes. It costs over £17.2 million annually to run these services, much of which comes from the generous support of the local community.
24th February 2025
Our hospice story
Pilgrims Hospices has been at the heart of the east Kent community since the Canterbury hospice opened in 1982.
The hospices were the vision of one local nurse, the late Ann Robertson, founder and Pilgrims’ Lifetime President. Ann wanted to make a difference for the people in her community facing terminal illness, following her own experience caring for her husband. Thanks to her devotion, and the help of countless others, today we have almost 200 clinical staff. Together, they support thousands of people each year.
The first hospice opened in Canterbury in 1982, followed by Thanet in 1992, and Ashford in 2001.
Our Hospice Story 5
Our Hospice Story 1
Our Hospice Story 4
Our Hospice Story 2
Our Hospice Story 3
It is a great privilege to have worked with so many forward thinking and talented individuals over the years; in the early years we faced the day to day headache of meeting our financial needs. As the years have passed, we’ve established relationships not only with our generous public but with the business community, who help us to raise the profile of our charity and engage with the wider community.
We remain the welcoming face that will guide people through some of the most difficult times, the support of the community fills our hearts with great joy as we continue our journey to help even more people each year.
Ann, speaking at our 40th birthday party in 2022
Helen Bennett, Chief Executive Officer, with Ann Robertson at Pilgrims Hospices’ 40th birthday party in 2022
The staff at the hospices are truly community heroes, with more than 3,000 people within their care each year. Over the years, Pilgrims has pioneered ground-breaking research in palliative care, embraced innovative, cutting-edge technology to improve the quality of life for patients, and delivers education and training across east Kent for many other health and social care providers.
Pilgrims continues to grow from strength to strength, and in order to provide the much-needed care, our clinical staff are supported by an award-winning charity fundraising team, an established network of profitable retail shops, a successful local lottery, and a wealth of talents through its invaluable volunteer workforce.
From the very beginning, patients have been at the heart of everything Pilgrims do, and we will only continue to grow and develop with the help of the community.
Help us continue our story and be here for anyone who needs us, for generations to come with a gift in your Will.
See the impact your legacy will have on the thousands of people and their families we care for, now and in the future.
Each year, Pilgrims Hospices care for thousands of people across east Kent, with services provided from its three hospice sites in Ashford, Canterbury, and Thanet, as well as in patients’ own homes. It costs over £17.2 million annually to run these services, much of which comes from the generous support of the local community.
17th February 2025
Pilgrims proud to join hospices across England, Scotland and Wales to protect the future of hospice care
We’re proud to announce the launch of the “This is Hospice Care” campaign, a ground breaking collaboration between 143 hospices across England, Scotland, and Wales, brought together by Hospice UK.
It’s finality and uncertainty, brave faces and shedding tears. It’s short days and long nights. Living for now with the weight of tomorrow.
But it’s also love and life and celebration. It’s care at home, and in a hospice, care for those dying and for those around them. It’s going the extra mile, doing away with convention and remembering what really matters. It’s easing pain and bringing comfort, cherishing memories and creating new ones. Part of the community, part of our story, part of us.
It’s allowing anyone, anywhere, to embrace the life we have left.
This is the legacy of hospice care. But we need it to be your legacy too.
Just as this incredible support would not exist without hospices across the UK, hospice care would not exist without you. A gift in your Will helps ensure care at the end of life is here for everyone who needs it, both now and in the future. It’s ours to protect.
Help hospice care live on for all, for now, forever.
Hospices like ours are at the very heart of communities, offering compassionate care and support when we need it most. For many of us, a hospice will touch our lives, whether for ourselves, a loved one, or a friend, providing comfort, dignity, and expert care through life’s most challenging times.
But just as this incredible support wouldn’t exist without hospices across the UK, hospice care wouldn’t exist without you.
We rely heavily on charitable donations to keep our doors open.
That’s why we’ve come together to shine a light on the essential role hospices play in our communities and protect our futures.
We’re asking everyone to consider leaving a gift in their Will to Pilgrims Hospices. By doing so, you can help us continue to provide this vital care, ensuring that everyone has the support they need for generations to come.
Together, we can make surethat hospice care lives on for all, for now, forever.
Each year, Pilgrims Hospices care for thousands of people across east Kent, with services provided from its three hospice sites in Ashford, Canterbury, and Thanet, as well as in patients’ own homes. It costs over £17.2 million annually to run these services, much of which comes from the generous support of the local community.
