Long term supporter raises incredible sum for Bolton Hospice

Rosie Adamson-Clark, a long-standing supporter of and patient had the hospice, has experienced the work done at the inpatient unit and wellbeing hub at first hand.

Having championed Bolton Hospice for many year, raising funds through community music events, LGBTQ+ film screenings and poetry sales, she has raised a total of £7,409.

Rosie said: "The Wellbeing Hub was cheerful, homey, comfortable and welcoming.

"The team of nurses, doctors, creative therapists, and psychologists provided incredible support and a safety net, helping me find a way forward."

Rosie with Sir Ian McKellan (Image: Bolton Hospice)

Rosie says that the work Bolton Hospice, based just off Chorley New Road, does, goes far beyond caring for people at the end of their lives.

Instead, it also supports people living with chronic illnesses and provides a safe space for rediscovering the joy in life.

She said: "I’m a big supporter of the hospice because I’ve seen from the inside what it does.

“I’ve seen it from all sides.

Rosie has raised funds through a variety of means (Image: Bolton Hospice)

“To be honest, when I was an outpatient I thought, well, I'll never use a hospice, I'm just not ill enough to use a hospice.

“But actually, I have a terminal heart failure diagnosis, and I needed the hospice.

“I needed that support, this is my fifth time now as an inpatient; every time I become very ill and have a crisis with my heart and lungs, they take me in and help me recover from it.

“They’re amazing, absolutely amazing.”

Rosie’s fund-raising efforts come at a time when the hospice is in more need of support than ever.

In the summer of last year, the hospice revealed that, like many similar institutions around the country, it was facing a funding gap of around £1.25M.

Rosie is a long term supporter of Bolton Hospice (Image: Bolton Hospice)

This prompted an outpouring of generosity and support from the community, including The Bolton News’s Save Bolton Hospice campaign.

Through a string of fundraising efforts the deficit was cut to a forecast of just £400,000 for 2024/25.

But even before this challenge came to light, Rosie was already a well-established supporter of the hospice.

She said: "They encouraged me back into life because I'd kind of shut down a bit. When you've had a major trauma like that, it's not just your body that shuts down, your mind shuts down as well.

“And you think, what's the point in going on?

"But when I came here, the hospice encouraged me back into life.

"They wrapped me in a warm, encouraging embrace and enticed me back out into the world."

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"As well as the inpatient unit, they have a flexible, drop-in day service called the Wellbeing Hub, and there’s a Creative Therapy department which is always buzzing, buzzing with people and energy.

“There are music events as well, where they have guitarists and they have a harpist who comes in and plays.

“There’s also a group who help people with lung fibrosis.

"There's a great need for the hospice for people who are in similar positions to me.

“They're so knowledgeable in palliative care, they are the experts, and they give their everything."

The funds Rosie raised will help to continue Bolton Hospice’s specialist services including the inpatient unit, drop in services at the wellbeing hub and the Hospice at Home service.