Springhill Hospice nominated to benefit from Co-op community fund

L-R Jill Wilson, Ruth Young, Jenny Allen from the Coop and Beckie Valentine

Springhill Hospice has been chosen to benefit from the Co-op Local Community Fund, over the next 12 months.

When Co-operative members buy certain Co-op branded products and services and use their blue Co-op membership card at the checkout, 1p from every pound spent goes to support local causes.

The last 18 months have been very challenging for charities like the hospice. The pandemic has drastically affected fundraising efforts, so they are grateful to have this partnership with the local Co-op.

The hospice is raising funds for their counselling service, and your support means that you could help to fund 70 hours of vital psychological and supportive care, for those in your community who are having to come to terms with a diagnosis of a life-limiting illness.

The hospice is urging local members to choose Springhill as their cause, so they can deliver the project and help more people in Rochdale, Heywood and Middleton.

Terminal diagnosis can be a tremendous shock, shifting our sense of safety and security both physically and emotionally. Treatment for cancer and other illnesses can also be debilitating, and raises issues around loss and adjustment. Depression and anxiety are very common problems, not just for patients but also for their families. Therapy helps to see problems clearly and works through worries and concerns in a private and confidential space, without judgement. Providing free, vital psychological and supportive care to those dealing with emotional distress, as a result of a life limiting condition, has become a lifeline for hundreds of people living in Rochdale, Heywood and Middleton. Springhill step in at the start of the diagnosis journey, right until the very end.

Carl, a patient to benefit from sessions with the hospice counselling team said: “If you’d have told me two years ago that I would be talking, crying, painting, writing poetry and even gardening, and with such confidence, I would have laughed. With the help of the counselling team I now realise that it’s okay to cry, it’s okay to talk openly and that, through art and poetry, this 42 year old truck driver CAN have a voice.”

Co-op members can select Springhill as their Local Community Fund cause by visiting the Co-op web site (coop.co.uk) or via the Co-op app, so they can continue making a difference.