Better late than never - Kathleen wins the Christmas Raffle

Grandmother Kathleen Pope rushed to enter the Saint Francis Hospice raffle before it closed and she’s very glad she did after winning £7,000 just before Christmas!

Kathleen, from Brentwood, has been supporting the hospice since its Hospice at Home team cared for her mum Violet Brooks before she died in January.

“The raffle tickets were sent out and I thought I’d missed the deadline for sending them back,” said Kathleen.

“I felt bad so when I went to the hospice’s Mistletoe Market, I brought the tickets with me and handed them in.

“I really didn’t believe it when I got a call to say I’d won.

“It has been such a hard year and I really feel mum was looking down on me.

“Winning the money will take some of my worries away. I am just so pleased and really grateful.”

Kathleen's experience of Hospice care

Kathleen always knew about the hospice but she didn’t realise it cared for people in their homes.

“When people think of the hospice, they think of a building where people go at the end of their life,” said Kathleen.  

“Mum wanted to be at home and I didn’t know that was an option.

“The nurses who came from the hospice were so lovely and warm. They spoke to mum and asked her questions. They had time for her and they were interested in her. I also felt I had someone to talk to. I was offered more help but I was able to manage, I just needed some help in the evenings so I could cook dinner without feeling guilty. It really helped us with a bit of normality as you do have to carry on the best you can.”

Supporting the Hospice now and in the future

Kathleen has also signed up to play the Saint Francis Hospice Lottery so she can give a regular donation to help the charity continue caring and supporting other people when they need it.

“We are only doing something little, but we are helping where we can,” said Kathleen.

“The hospice is so important; people will always need the hospice, now and in the future”