Everything's sunny for hospice fete (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Everything's sunny for hospice fete

Millie Taphouse among the sunflowers. Ref: 99128-85THE Prospect Hospice celebrated its silver jubilee in style over the weekend with its annual garden fete.

Hundreds of visitors, attracted by the friendly atmosphere and sunny skies, attended this year's fete, which was held within the hospice's beautiful gardens.

Dozens of volunteers sparkled in the sunshine, wearing silver to mark the celebrations.

Ann Ockenden, from Old Town, who has been a volunteer at the hospice for eight years, was wearing a silver wig to sell raffle tickets.

She said: "It's a marvellous day. The sun is shining and we are getting loads of visitors.

"Days like this really allow people to come and have a look around the hospice and it removes many people's pre-conceptions, many of which are wrong.

"This is not a place for doom and gloom but hope and fun."

Visitors enjoyed looking around at the many stalls and could buy specially picked sunflowers representing the hospice's logo while youngsters visited the goats, sheep and two Shetland ponies.

But four 18-day-old ducklings attracted the most attention.

Joanne Hunt, 32, brought her two children, eight-year-old Jasmine and three year-old Drew from their home at Coate.

She said: "I bring the children every year, and this year it's fantastic. There is something for everyone. The children love playing the games and seeing the animals."

Maggie Gill, a fundraiser for the hospice, said: "It's been a fantastic day, for us it has been all about celebrating our 25th birthday but also fundraising through the local community where most of our money comes from."

The hospice was formed in 1980 by a group of local people who recognised the need for extra support for people coping with a life-threatening illness.

Since then the organisation has grown to become a provider of palliative care, offering care in a specialist in-patient unit as well as within the local community.

It costs £3.6m each year for the hospice to provide its services of which 70 per cent is raised locally.

More photographs appear in today's Swindon Advertiser