Organisers of a popular charity night have celebrated its 15th year by donating over £2,000 to a local hospice.
The annual Darlington and Simpson Rolling Mills Social Club charity night is held in aid of St Teresa’s Hospice, Darlington, and reached the 15 year milestone in November 2019.
Hospice volunteer and event organiser Nancy Spencer recently presented a cheque for £2,120.15 to St Teresa’s, which provides care and support to those living with life-limiting illnesses in Darlington, South Durham and North Yorkshire.
Nancy, who has volunteered for the hospice for over 20 years, said: “It’s fantastic that this has been going for 15 years now. I’ve done this every year, only missing one when my husband Brian died.”
The charity night began when Nancy decided to raise awareness of cancer when a couple of her friends passed away from the disease.
Nancy added: “The first charity night was such a success that it gave me the incentive to do even more to help local causes and the St Teresa’s Hospice charity night became an annual event.”
The fundraising evening features live entertainment, fundraising games and a star prize raffle.
Janet Humble, from Darlington and Simpson Rolling Mills Club, helps Nancy to organise the event and said: “This is brilliant for the club. Everyone loves it and the entertainment is fantastic. We’re all looking forward to the next one in November.”
To date the events have raised almost £30,000, which has been used to help fund the day to day running costs of the hospice.
Nancy shows no sign of slowing down, saying: “I want to get to the 20th fundraising night before I stop. It will be my 80th birthday in a couple of years and I really want to do a sponsored freefall for the hospice.”
St Teresa’s Hospice chief executive Jane Bradshaw, added: “Nancy is a wonderful hospice supporter and an honorary life member, in recognition of all her hard work in volunteering and fundraising. I always enjoy her charity nights and I am delighted that it continues to grow after 15 years.”
