Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice recently celebrated the retirement of Gerald Peters, a longstanding Trustee, Ambassador and Volunteer of the charity, at a special gathering attended by the Mayor of Greenwich, friends and family, members of the hospice’s Board of Trustees, staff and volunteers.
Gerald who was also the hospice’s Company Secretary has dedicated almost 40 years of service to the hospice and has been involved with the charity since the launch of the first community fundraising campaign “Give us a Quid!” back in 1985.
He joined our original fundraising committee and was instrumental in helping to raise the funds needed to build the Abbey Wood based hospice that stands today.
He later became Secretary to the fundraising committee and several years later was invited to join the original Board of Trustees, taking on the role of Company Secretary – a position he held until 2022.
Ruth Russell, Chair of the Board of Trustees said
“Gerald has always worked tirelessly for our special hospice, not only in his appointed roles, but also as an enthusiastic and dedicated fundraiser, who is happy to shake his bucket, and he continues to do whatever he can to help raise the six million pounds that we need from the local community every year, to provide hospice services.”
In recognition of his special and unique contribution, Gerald was appointed a Lifetime Presidency of the hospice. This is the first time the hospice has awarded this honour.
The hospice had conducted a governance review and has been working hard to improve the diversity of the board; Gerald recognised himself that it was time to stand down to create capacity for a new trustee to make their own contribution to the hospice.
Gerald said
“It has been a privilege and a most rewarding experience to have been a volunteer supporter of our hospice charity since the early days of campaigning and community fundraising back in 1985, and to have served as a member of the Board of Trustees for the past 30 years. I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to all my friends in the hospice community for their kind wishes on my “retirement” from the Board, and for awarding me the honorary presidency of our charity.”
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- Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice is a local charity dedicated to providing free, high-quality palliative care and support to local people who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness, their families and professional carers.
- They are a leading provider of specialist palliative care, support and education in the two boroughs and have been rooted in the community for over 25 years.
- Patients can access services through the Hospice at Home service, the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (Woolwich), 13-bed inpatient unit in Abbey Wood, and in community care homes.
- Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice supports patient wellbeing and provides physical, emotional, social, spiritual and psychological care and guidance to support individuals to be prepared, without fear or anxiety and to live independently for as long as possible. Care extends to the loved ones and carers of the patient.
- The Hospice relies on retail sales, fundraising and donations to deliver its vital work in the community and to lead the way in clinical practice and so continues to drive forward the development of positive partnerships with a wide range of supporters within the community.
- The Hospice aims to raise £6 million every year and run fundraising events throughout the year
- Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice has 16 retail stores across the two boroughs
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