'£50,000 not enough to thank hospice for the care they gave my wife at the end of her life' - fundraiser
A dedicated and devoted wife has raised more than £51,000 in just five years for the charity which cared for her partner.
Judy King, from Broseley, has climbed mountains, held dances, organised open gardens, sold CDs and books and compared quizzes – all in memory of her wife Mandy de Winter who died in 2018.
Mandy, a talented and highly respected dancer, had been cared for by Severn Hospice and spent the last 10 days of her life on Alexandra ward in Apley, Telford.
“The care Mandy received from the nurses, doctors and everyone else who worked at the hospice came from a place of love,” said Judy.
“From the moment you arrive at the hospice, you are family and that is priceless. £50,000 is not enough to say thank you.
“I do not fear death in any way because of what I witnessed with Mandy – I see it as beautiful and that is what the hospice does, you really can’t ask for anything more.
"They allowed me to care for Mandy when I could and when they did, they did it beautifully, skilfully, and lovingly.
“For everything the hospice does, it should be funded properly, so I will keep doing whatever I can to help. I am not going to stop. Now perhaps, I will set a target for £100,000. Maybe I will not do that in another five years, but I will get there."
Judy added: “I certainly won’t be climbing up any more mountains though – I did Snowdon twice, once as a training walk and then the other with friends and I said, ‘never again’. Mandy would have laughed if she had known I was doing that, she knew I hated walking uphill.
“Instead, I will carry on with the open gardens, selling greeting cards of my photographs and the videos and CDs and books about Mandy’s love and experience of dance, and organising my fundraisers.
“Whenever I ask people for money for the hospice in Mandy’s memory, I always give them something in return: tea and cake, a greetings card or an experience. And this isn’t really from me, it is from Mandy thanking them for their donations.
“The amount we have raised is a testament to how loved she was.”
Elodie Home, head of fundraising, said: “Judy has raised an exceptional amount of money for us, and we are so grateful to her for this.
“She speaks so eloquently of the support that Mandy received, the love and care she experienced while she was on our wards. She says our care is priceless. But it is thanks to people like Judy and those who have supported her and donated in memory of Mandy, that we are able to provide such care.
“We can’t thank her enough for her fundraising and for her kind words about the work we do. She is an incredible lady and when she says she will carry on fundraising, I don’t doubt her.”
If you would like to donate to Judy’s JustGiving page, in memory of Mandy, visit justgiving.com/fundraising/judy-king7
