news Spring & Summer 2019 Registered Charity No. 512987 Kirkwood Hospice @KirkwoodHospice Lace up for a night to remember! Page 2 In this issue... Cooking up a storm Meeting a local hero Head Chef Matthew on creating Lifelong rugby fan Raymond bespoke food experiences for gets to know league legend our patients. Henderson Gill. 1 Our Enabling Volunteers At Kirkwood, patient care and supporting people and their families to improve quality of life is at the heart of everything we do. We focus on what is really important to each individual in order to help them remain as independent as possible. There are many ways that Finding out who those in the community choose they are, what is are many ways Kirkwood’s to volunteer their time for important to them and how Enabling Volunteers can support Kirkwood and we are proud we can best support them. We patients to ensure each individual to have a new team of Patient want each person to be seen enjoys the best quality of life Enabling Volunteers based here as an individual outside of their during their time with us. at the Hospice. condition. This team are trained to talk Whether this may be enjoying For more information or to with and listen to patients in fresh air out in our gardens, find out how to become an order to meet individual needs playing games, watching Enabling Volunteer for Kirkwood, as closely as possible and get to television, listening to music or please call us on: 01484 557900 know the person a little better. simply just having a chat, there “Thank you for taking care of my Grandad” Richard Day was cared for on the In-Patient Unit at Kirkwood at the end of his life in August 2018. During that time, his granddaughter, Poppy, visited the Hospice and witnessed first-hand the care her grandad received. Poppy decided she wanted to give back to Kirkwood by hosting a Dear Kirkwood Hospice coffee morning for her family and Poppy friends so that other people could I wrote this letter to say a big receive care like Richard did. thank you for taking care of my On Saturday 22nd September, grandad Richard, he’s gone now to heaven we are all heartbroken but we Poppy brought her friends and are sure we took him to the right place. family to her Cleckheaton home to raise vital funds for Kirkwood. The To say a big thank you we are going to do a day raised an amazing £840, which coffee morning/ afternoon to raise money for was then topped up to £1,000 by your Hospice, I hope you take the money we Poppy’s grandma, Sandra. raise because it’s important we want to help During the lead up to the you to carry on helping people like my grandad Richard. I wish we could have done more to help fundraiser, Poppy wrote a letter my grandad Richard. to the Kirkwood team, thanking them for the care her grandad Thank you so very much. received. We’d like to share this letter with you. From Poppy Day, Richard Day’s granddaughter @KirkwoodHospice Kirkwood Hospice @KirkwoodHospice 2 SATURDAY 22ND JUNE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF HUDDERSFIELD Kirkwood’s Midnight Memory If this target is met, our where walkers can stop along Walk is back on Saturday 22nd Midnight Memory Walk the way and write a dedication June and this year we want will have raised in excess of to their loved ones on our very to make this our biggest walk £1million towards Kirkwood special memory wall. yet. Whether you’ve taken patient care since it launched Once finishing the walk part before or looking to take in 2006. back at the University of part for the first time, you are This family-friendly event Huddersfield, walkers are guaranteed to be part of an is suitable for all ages and we presented with a breakfast unforgettable night. even encourage your canine butty and medal. You can wear Starting and finishing at the companions to join in the fun. this medal, knowing you have University of Huddersfield, join On the night, registration helped to support Kirkwood to us and lace up to walk six or ten will open from 9.30pm with care for anyone affected with a miles in memory of loved ones. live entertainment bringing an life limiting illness in Kirklees. Last year, 1,265 walkers from electric atmosphere during the So get ready, lace up your across the Kirklees community countdown to midnight. boots and take on this special laced up to make it our As the clock strikes 12am, challenge for Kirkwood! biggest event yet and raised a you will embark on the record-breaking £117,000 for challenging walk, filling the Standard prices: Kirkwood. streets of Huddersfield with We want to be bigger and lime green T-shirts along a Adults £17 stronger than ever this year, brand new route. as we try to fund the cost of Along both the six or ten Children (16 and under) £10 running Kirkwood for a whole mile walk, the routes will pass Dogs £5 week! Kirkwood Hospice in Dalton, The Midnight Memory Walk is sponsored by: SIGN UP Thank you to the NOW University of Huddersfield for their support. Sign up online at: www.kirkwoodhospice.co.uk/mmw orwww.kirkwoodhospice.co.uk call: 01484 557911 3 Cooking up a Storm Meet Matthew. Matthew has been a Chef for 20 years and recently left his position as Head Chef at Harvey Nichols to work for Kirkwood. Through his role, Matthew believes he can make a real difference by creating bespoke food experiences for every patient. This is his story: “Starting my role at Kirkwood, I “After having a long chat was looking for something local with her, she told me that she in my community where I could loved fresh pasta and that one make a difference. of her favourite dishes was pasta “Different people have Carbonara. different associations and types “We got up early one morning, of food that make them happy. I got the pasta machine out, think one of my jobs is to make made some fresh tagliatelle and every patient’s time here, from a a beautiful Carbonara sauce. I food perspective, as positive as believe that was the first time Matthew possible. she’d eaten in a few days.” “We had a patient who was quite unwell when I first started. Trisha Ward, of Sheepridge, was a patient on Kirkwood’s In-Patient Unit at the end of 2018. This is her side of the story: “Before I was ever ill, I loved my He was very humble and gentle, food and I had a huge appetite. but I thought he’d forget all Trisha My family used to all laugh about it. because I was quite slim and I “The very next day, he’d gone could eat whatever I wanted. away and thought about it and “I can’t even describe what “When I got ill, I suddenly brought me one of the meals Matthew has meant to me. After went off my food. I didn’t have an I said I really liked. It was fresh I’d been at Kirkwood, my family appetite for anything and that’s tagliatelle, which was heaven couldn’t believe how well I was when I knew I was really poorly. I on a plate. I felt really emotional doing and I put that down to ended up in hospital and nothing and I started to perk up a little bit Matthew, and the whole medical appealed to me. My brain knew and think about what I might eat team here. I’ve got stronger every that I needed to eat, but I never next. day and for that, I can’t thank wanted to. “After that, I started eating them enough.” “Then I came to Kirkwood and again. That first day, I ate three everything changed. I met the meals and that’s the first time After her time at Kirkwood, Trisha new Chef, Matthew, and he came I’d eaten anything like that was discharged to her own home round to talk to me about food. for weeks. Before I was eating where she died peacefully in “He sat down, and he really because I knew I needed to keep December 2018. listened to me. It was so nice that my body alive, but now I am he took the time out to talk to enjoying food again. me, and put himself on my level. @KirkwoodHospice Kirkwood Hospice @KirkwoodHospice 4 The Mayor of Kirklees’ Charity Appeal Last year, we were delighted to find out that the Mayor of Kirklees, Gwen Lowe, had chosen Kirkwood as one of her charities during her year in office. All the money raised by The Mayor’s Charity Fundraising Appeal will help to provide important training for our Community Nurse Specialists. Between May 2018 and May and businesses challenged to By supporting our Community 2019, Mayor of Kirklees, Gwen host their own fundraising events team in this way, Gwen hopes to Lowe, and her Charity Challenge in aid of the appeal. leave a lasting legacy. Appeal team set themselves the Gwen was inspired to raise She said: “In the perfect end, goal of raising a phenomenal funds for our Community I’m sure most would wish to die £20,000 for their two chosen Specialist Nurses after hearing at home. I recently listened to a charities; Kirkwood Hospice about the care and support piece on the radio during Dying and the RSPCA.