Couple’s wedding shows how supporters make a difference at Severn Hospice
The bitter-sweet story of a bride and bridegroom who tied the knot at Severn Hospice was told at the Telford Tree of Light presentation ceremony.
The charity was among six good causes to benefit from generous donations given by shoppers in memory of loved ones, raising £42,000.
It was awarded £21,000 and the largest slice of the proceeds when organisers Telford and District Rotary Clubs held a special dinner at Shifnal’s Park Hotel.
Norma Ross, of the hospice, said that the emotional wedding of Samantha and Alec Webster, of Newport, took place days before she died and was a good example of how donations provide support for families in their hour of need.
She said: “What you have given us is priceless. We don’t take it for granted.
“Thank you to everybody involved especially the unseen people working behind the scenes to put stamps on envelopes. Thank you very much indeed.”
Samantha, formerly Beale, died on September 7 last year after a short illness.
Hospice staff pulled out all the stops so that the couple got their big day surrounded by friends and family. She taught at Hadley Learning Community, in Telford,
Other beneficiaries were Lingen Davies Cancer Fund which received £10,500. Telford & Wrekin Young Carers Service, Club 2000 Sport & Leisure,and Tickwood Farm, in Much Wenlock, and The Belfrey Theatre, in Wellington, all received £2,625.
Laura Thorogood, manager of Telford & Wrekin Young Carers Service, told the 118 guests that the sum would be spent on respite for the five to 18-year-olds that the project supports.
Tree of Light chairman Max Clowes said: “We are here to distribute the generous 2018 donations predominantly from the people of Telford but some from much further afield.
“We make this possible by offering a service to those donors in enabling them to remember their loved ones at Christmas.”
The Rotary clubs join forces to organise a huge fir tree at Telford Shopping Centre for shoppers to register the names of friends and relatives in exchange for a donation.
The lists are also displayed by the Telford Journal, Carols Cafe, in Wellington; Truffles, in Ironbridge; Tranter Lowe, in Oakengates; Dawley Christian Centre; and Jubilee House, in Madeley.
