News from the Chair - New Year Message 2025

Dear Friends of Burnham Hospital,

I hope the festive season went well for you and here’s hoping that 2025 treats you kindly.

2024 was a busy year! On the 3rd Saturday of each month, we were fortunate to have our very popular coffee mornings at the Methodist Church, and for the year we raised a total of £3233.92.

Sincere thanks to the church who have invited us back for 2025. You will see our current ‘Events Calendar’ for all of the dates on our website www.friendsofburnhamhospital.org.uk

We held two very successful ‘Party Nights’ at Brean Golf and Country Club, our thanks go to Alan House who gave us the venue free of charge as his way of helping the hospital.

In total, we raised over £1500. We are pleased to announce that the new owners are also affording us the venue at no cost. The next event will be on Friday, 28th March, music will be by Lipinski Brothers.

We held a table top sale in the car park at the hospital and raised just over £300.00.

We agreed to fund 2 x Bladder Scanners and 

2 x BP/Sats machines which will be a great help to the hospital.

The ‘activity co-ordinator’ Helen has had a major positive impact on the patients and decor within the hospital and we are always happy to fund her for the many activities she organises.

Unfortunately, Helen has now left us, but we are fortunate to have Karen take over the role and we wish her all the very best moving forward.

In addition, we fund the vending machine in outpatients and daily newspapers for patients to enjoy.

Fundraising is very important, but equally so are your donations and membership to ‘The Friends’ therefore:-

If you have not renewed your membership in the past year, then it is highly likely that it has expired, we really do need you.

Standing order is the best method of payment as it saves having to send in cash or cheques.

 Details of our bank account are on our website www.friendsofburnhamhospital.org.uk you can set up a standing order or make a BACs payment, however, if you prefer, you can still make payment by cheque or cash. Just complete the membership form and pop it into the outpatients department at the hospital. If you do renew your membership online, please let us know by providing us with your full details so we can then update our database.

We still have ladies working away in the background handcrafting beautiful cards; knitting and sewing, so if you have any card crafting materials, double knitting wool, or material that you no longer need, then please think of us.

Bill is still making his bird boxes, bug houses, plaques, key rings, and bird feeders. These are on sale at Crafty Comforts on the High Street, also on sale at our coffee mornings, so if you want some great ideas for presents just pop along to either venue. For the year 2024, he has made over £800.00 and all of these takings go directly to the hospital funds.

I get invited to give talks about the hospital and ‘The Friends’. If you are part of an organisation that would like to hear more, then please contact me.

Spring will soon be upon us and we all like to have a sort out, perhaps you received presents that you would like to donate! We still need paperback books, jigsaws, unwanted gifts, toiletries, bottles of alcohol, and top-quality bric-a-brac, just contact me and I can arrange to collect.

It only remains to wish you all a very safe, healthy, and prosperous 2025.

Kind Regards

Ceri Joyce

Chairman + Publicity & Marketing

Website: Friends of Burnham Hospital

Email: ceri160443@sky.com

Tel: 07977 191799Tel: 01278 323794Like us on FACEBOOK

Check out our supporters: www.friendsofburnhamhospital.org.uk/supporters