Hospital charity launches virtual festive fundraiser

A local hospital charity has launched a virtual festive fun run as a way for people to safely raise money during lockdown.

Mid Cheshire Hospitals Charity (MCH Charity), part of Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, normally holds a festive ‘Merry Mile’ in Crewe’s Queens Park every December.

The event invites participants of all ages to ‘run, walk or toddle’ a mile to raise money for the charity.

However, due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, they have taken their festive fundraiser virtual to allow them to keep up the annual tradition.

This year’s fundraiser will again be sponsored by Crewe-based Alpha Omega Securities who joined the charity last year to make the event bigger than ever.

Registration is via the charity’s social media accounts or website and is £10 for adults and £5 for children over 11 (under 11s free). The event takes place between Monday 30 November and Saturday 12 December, the first 250 entrants will get a free Santa Hat and children will get a certificate for completing the event.

All money raised will go towards the Lost Little Ones appeal, which will provide the funds to create a dedicated suite and attached outside space on the labour ward at Leighton Hospital for people experiencing baby loss.

The suite will allow parents to stay together for a few hours or days with their baby in a comfortable, non-clinical environment to spend quiet time together away from the rest of the ward.

The Lost Little Ones appeal aims to raise £100,000 and was almost three quarters of the way to the target when the COVID-19 pandemic struck. The appeal was paused whilst the Charity team supported the hospital trust to develop projects which have supported the health and wellbeing of staff.

The charity will be using a number of festive activities, including their popular Wear It Festive day on Thursday 17 December, to re-launch the appeal.

Emma Robertson, MCH Charity Manager, said: “The Merry Mile is absolutely our most favourite event of the year, so we weren’t going to let the restrictions of 2020 stop us doing what we love.

“Working with Ken and the fabulous team over at Alpha Omega, we think we’ve come up with a great, safe, virtual version which will still have all the festive family fun that the Merry Mile is known for. We’ve renamed it ‘Merry Miles’ for 2020 and the fundraiser pack is loaded with things for all the whole family, including a new branded t-shirt and certificates for the children.”

Ken Lawton, Managing Director of Alpha Omega Securities, said: “It is a real pleasure that we are working with the MCH Charity team again this year in supporting raising funds for The Lost Little Ones appeal as we feel that this is very important to the community and especially those that have lost a child.

“In the difficult time that we are in I hope that this event can create fun for all that are able to support us. We would love to top the amount raised last year.”

To register for Merry Miles please visit our Facebook or Twitter pages @mchcharity or our website mchcharity.org

MCH Charity is a registered charity that manages all money raised for, or donated to, Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which includes Leighton Hospital in Crewe, Victoria Infirmary, Northwich and Elmhurst Intermediate Care Centre, Winsford. The Trust is also part of Central Cheshire Integrated Care Partnership (CCICP), a unique local health partnership that provides a range of community health services for people across South Cheshire and Vale Royal.

MCH Charity supports patients, their relatives and friends, staff and local businesses and organisations to raise money for the charity. All the money we raise is spent to enhance and improve the care and experience that people receive when using Trust services. We purchase state-of-the-art equipment, additional comforts and fund enhanced training for staff.  

The charity works closely with the Trust to make sure that all specialities are supported to spend every penny of the money raised on items that will directly improve patient care.

For more information please visit our website www.mchcharity.org and our social media pages on Facebook and Twitter @mchcharity