Fabulous fundraiser Tracey Lennard has been honoured after raising more than £200,000 for The Friends of the Hospital of St Cross.
Tracey has spent a quarter of a century organising events for the charity, which helps to bring new services and equipment to the Barby Road hospital and improve the experience of patients.
Her latest event, an annual black tie dinner dance, raised almost £7,300 and helped take Tracey past the milestone figure.
Doug Jones, Chair of The Friends, said: “These types of event don’t happen by chance, there is a team of people working away in the background.
“But every great team needs a great captain and we have been fortunate to have had such a fabulous person both starting and leading the team since 1999. She has advised, guided and directed all of us and these events would not have happened without her.
The team organise an average of four events a year – ranging from quiz nights to murder mysteries, boat trips, train rides and flower arranging – are held to support the work of the Friends.
“On behalf of your family, the Friends, the Trust, the staff and of course the patients, thank you Tracey for all that you do.”
Professor Andy Hardy, Chief Executive Officer of University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, which runs The Hospital of St Cross, and Trust Chair Sue Noyes presented Tracey with a bouquet of flowers and thanked her and The Friends for all they do.
“The amount of money raised by Tracey and the Friends is amazing and we, along with all the patients who have felt the benefit of their incredible efforts, are hugely grateful for their support,” said Professor Hardy. “Tracey is a real inspiration.”
Since their foundation 70 years ago, The Friends have spent £4.3m on donations of equipment and support for projects which have improved the patient experience and made more services available to patients in the Rugby area. In addition, The Friends have 170 volunteers who give an average of 10 hours per month to the hospital.
Sue added: “It is heart-warming to see the way volunteers raise the spirit of staff and patients at St Cross. Their selfless service, no matter how large or small, makes a huge difference.”
Doug thanked Andy and Sue for their kind words, adding that they could not achieve what they do without a close working relationship with the Trust and the tremendous support of the local community.
“We look forward to celebrating the platinum anniversary of the foundation of the Charity with an appeal which will aim to raise at least £70,000. We are in discussions about two or three projects which will support the Trust’s ambitious plans for developing services in Rugby,” he added.