It’s been a busy couple of months at the HOPE Centre. We now have two new Patrons, our annual Xmas Fun Day went very well and we have been privileged to receive some fantastic donations as well as fund raising actively ourselves. We would like to thank Martin Perkins who raised £806 from his birthday party; Maureen and John Parry for their donation of £275, the Ty Dewi Gallery for £68, the Mothers Union in Tenby for £50, the Co-op Community Fund for £1409 and the Freemasons for their wonderful donation of £3,500. HOPE has received ongoing support from West Wales Freemasons for several years and during their annual Xmas Fun day, James Ross, Head of West Wales Freemasons was delighted to be able to present the £3,500 to HOPE’s Chairman, Ken Brombley. This donation takes the total given by West Wales Freemasons since 2009 to an amazing £20,000. The total amount this year was made up of £3,000 from the West Wales Grand Charity and a £500 donation from Strumble Lodge of Freemasons.

We also raised £443 from our Xmas Raffle and £262 from a fundraising day in Morrisons, Haverfordwest. Moving forward to next year we anticipate another successful year for the Centre where we will be upgrading and modernising one of our washrooms and looking into fitting electric entrance doors. Finally we would like to officially welcome Simon Wright who has joined our team of physical therapists delivering bespoke physio sessions.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all of us at the Hope Centre. The Centre is closed from the 20th December, re-opening on Monday 6th January, 2020. Ken Brombley and Maureen Parry will be participating in the Saundersfoot New Year Swim on the 1st January, 2020 – good luck to them both.

We are delighted to announce that Angela Burns AM is now our second Patron. Prior to entering politics Angela worked in business and became a company director before moving to Pembrokeshire with her husband and two daughters. She was first elected to the Welsh Assembly in 2007, was re-elected in 2011 and 2016 and has fulfilled various ministerial roles culminating in currently serving as Shadow Cabinet Minister for Health & Wellbeing. She has been a Director of HOPE for the past 18 months but with her busy life feels that as Patron she will be able to be more actively supportive of the Charity.

We are really pleased that Councillor Simon Hancock has agreed to become a Patron of HOPE. Councillor Hancock has a record of public service stretching over 32 years. He has been a Neyland town Councillor since 1987 and has been town mayor nine times. A founder member of Pembrokeshire County Council in 1996 he is currently chairman and has occupied many rules in the council and other public bodies like the Care Council for Wales, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority and Hywel Dda University Health Board. Councillor Hancock is a Justice of the Peace and is a museum curator. He has been curator of the Haverfordwest  Town Museum since 1998 and is a history graduate with a PhD from Cardiff University. He occupies many public roles including chairman of the Pembrokeshire Historical Society and Haverfordwest  Civic Society and sits on a number of boards including the Torch Theatre and VC Gallery. 

Councillor Hancock said ‘ I am honoured and delighted to have been asked to become a Patron of HOPE Therapy Centre. The charity does incredible work for service users and their families and is rightly held in the highest regard.’

We had a great morning last week with Diane from the Body Shop who brought an array of samples and testers for us to play with here at the Centre. Members were able to order their favourite products but were also inspired by being able to test out the feel and scent of many new-to-them ranges. £150 was raised for the Centre through all the orders and our thanks to Diane for making it such a nice morning. We hope to do another one soon.

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Here at the HOPE Centre we try to assist our Carers, many of whom accompany their loved ones to the Centre for our oxygen or physical therapy. We have information on benefits available and local support networks for Carers but we also have details of the Carers UK Helpline which offers expert information advice and support about Carers rights, financial or practical help that is available and any other challenges that caring can present; Upfront – the first online guide of its kind to give tailored financial and practical information to those who are new to caring and a guide “Looking After Someone” – for anyone caring for family or friends. Then there is the Carers UK Forum – a welcoming online community where you can share what is on your mind, day or night. A few words from a fellow carer who understands what you are going through can be a lifeline. The Centre is currently working to attain the Bronze Level of the Investors in Carers Award.

We have been fortunate to secure funding from the Neyland TC for the purchase of an air hand dryer. This will enable us to stop using paper handtowels which will save the Centre money and also help to stop the occasional issue with our outside drains! Our thanks to the Councillors for their donation of £500.

We had a very successful Open Day – our thanks to all those who came to visit the Centre, particularly those who gave us donations for the work that we do here. Cllr. Linda Brown presented the Centre with a cheque for £558.48 raised last year when she was Mayor of Pembroke, and we also received £100 from Saundersfoot Rotary Club and an individual donation of £25. If you weren’t able to come to our Open Day do feel free to drop in any time to have a look round or pass on our details to anyone you think we might be able to help.

Emily raised a fantastic £1,240 for HOPE with her recent skydive. Thank you so much Emily and we wish you a great time at Uni. Pop in and see us anytime – we will miss you.

Our thanks to Gareth Lawlor for a £250 donation from his walk in June along the Great Wall of China – after 17 hours of walking Gareth had to give up a few miles from the end but an amazing effort and result. Thank you so much from us all at the HOPE Centre.