Pals raise huge £6k sum for Kettering hospital dementia garden appeal

Clare Washington, from Kettering, and Tracey Gray, from Thrapston, and some of their close friends, raised the money by organising a party night at The Plaza in Thrapston on December 16.

The event was attended by Forget-Me-Not Appeal organiser Jayne Chambers who gave a talk on the appeal’s aims – which are to transform a courtyard adjacent to Lamport and Twywell Ward into a dementia-friendly garden where patients can be safely active.

The event included a raffle, auction and name the giant teddy bear competition.

In addition to the £6,126 raised the cost of putting on the evening – about £2,000 – was paid for by an anonymous donor. Clare and Tracey also particularly wanted to thank their friends David Timlin, Tracey Sawford, Terry Nolan, and Lindsey and Cindy, for all their help.

Clare said: “We were completely and utterly blown away by the level of support we received for the event.

“Jayne gave a very inspiring talk about her vision for the garden and we received some very positive comments.”

The two friends, who both work for Tesco, heard about the appeal through social media and decided to support it.”

Donations to the appeal – since its launch in March 2017 – have now topped £30,000 and it has received generous support from local people and a number of local businesses who are involved in designing and building it.

Jayne said: “Clare and Tracey have done an amazing job and raised an enormous amount for the appeal - which will all go to very good use.

“I am constantly reminded just how much dementia touches people’s lives in so many ways and how this translates to support for the appeal.

“I would also like to thank the anonymous donor who helped make this terrific donation possible by paying the costs of the event itself.”

This isn’t the first fundraising event by Clare and Tracey. The pair put on a fundraising event twice each year and have previously raised money for the Air Ambulance, Marie Curie, British Heart Foundation, Diabetes UK, and the Skylark children’s ward at Kettering General Hospital.