St Catherine’s Hospice crowned Charity of the Year
St Catherine’s Hospice was thrilled to pick up the Charity of the Year Award and see one of their fabulous volunteers, Joe Brocking, crowned Volunteer of the Year at the West Sussex Community Times Awards earlier this week (Monday 16 November).
A huge cheer rung out as the hospice was announced the winner with the award publicly recognising the impact St Catherine’s has as the area’s local hospice provider. At an exciting time of change for St Catherine’s, following a generous legacy donation and land donation for a potential new hospice building, winning the Charity of the Year Award was a chance for St Catherine’s to celebrate the work that takes place daily.
Claire Irving, Director of Fundraising and Marketing at St Catherine’s, said: “It feels a real endorsement for the fantastic work of our staff and volunteers. At St Catherine’s everyone is passionate about providing great care for people at the end of their lives and helping them live well for as long as possible. To win Charity of the Year and tell everyone at St Catherine’s, including our patients, that we’ve had this endorsement is a huge, huge boost. This award is the icing on the cake for an incredible year.”
Every year, St Catherine’s is incredibly lucky to be supported by more than 800 volunteers who generously dedicate their time and skills to the hospice. And it was a very special moment to see one of these volunteers recognised for his efforts and awarded the West Sussex Community Time’s Volunteer of the Year Award.
Joe Brocking has been volunteering for St Catherine’s for two and a half years and his impact has been nothing short of incredible. Since he started volunteering, Joe’s driven patients to Day Hospice sessions on 480 round trips and last year alone, he clocked up nearly 7,000 miles driving patients – the same distance as London to Beijing! In addition to his driving duties Joe also supports the Fundraising Team and, in the last two years, has delivered more than 36,000 leaflets and posters for the hospice within the local area.
Having worked in construction for 50 years, Joe never thought he’d become a hospice volunteer but says it’s the most rewarding thing he’s ever done. He said: “Driving patients makes their day special. That’s why I do it. If I could choose one last thing to do on this earth, it’d be to drive a patient.”
