As reported before, the last two years have been quite tragic for the Friends with the loss of two Summer Fetes and three raffles, plus the financial loss from regular clubs and organisations who support us. The estimated losses are in the region of £60,000.
The tide has now turned and we had a really wonderful Fete this July with support from the local businesses and traders (a full list can be seen on the noticeboard by the Friends office). The weather was perfect and all the stalls were extremely busy with browsers of every age embracing the afternoon and joining in with the various entertainment acts who performed. We really appreciated the immense support from the public who attended, the input from many members of staff who manned the stalls, and of course the helpers who erected and dismantled the stalls. The Fete raised £8,379.32 which is believed to be our best yet.
The new Friends Tea Bar is now flourishing and the trolley shop is visiting the wards in the afternoons. Due to the efforts of Committee member June Lawrence, if a patient requests something that we do not have it is normally provided within the next day or so. We have moved on with modernisation and are now pleased to be able to accept card payments in both the Tea Bar and on the trolley.
We now have 108 registered members of the Friends who receive our newsletters by paying an annual subscription. If you have any friends who would like to join, please let us know by email at friendsofbognorhospital@gmail.com.
Chairman, Brian D Knight MBE OStJ GASI