Rowers make a splash for Martin House this weekend

Categories: Fundraising.

Teams of rowers will make a splash for cash when Martin House Children’s Hospice holds its Dragon Boat Race at Roundhay Park.

More than 40 teams will battle to be crowned champions in the contest on Waterloo Lake on Sunday 25 June.

Maddie Bentley, events manager at Martin House, said: “The Dragon Boat Race is such a great spectacle – there are races every 10 minutes, so there’s plenty of fast and furious action to watch.

“We also have a tug of war competition, family funfair and plenty of food stalls, all the in beautiful setting of Roundhay Park, so it’s a great day out.”

The day sees teams of 10, plus a drummer, paddle for victory in a series of heats, culminating in a grand final which will see the winning team take home the Dragon Boat Race trophy. There are also prizes for the best fancy dress and highest fundraisers.

Martin House, cares for babies, children and young people with life-limiting conditions across West, North and East Yorkshire. Its care includes respite breaks, symptom control and emergency care and end of life care, as well as bereavement support for families.

Maddie added: “Thanks to our headline sponsor HARIBO, and our tug of war sponsor GMI Construction, more of the money raised at the Dragon Boat Race will go to providing specialist care to seriously ill children and supporting their families through the most difficult times.”

Jon Hughes, managing director at HARIBO, said: “HARIBO has been a proud partner of Martin House for the past 15 years, and I’m pleased that we can sponsor their biggest public event of the year to raise awareness and funds for the vital work they do for families across West, North and East Yorkshire.

“Every child deserves moments of happiness, and we can’t wait to take to the water for the Dragon Boat Race to support a charity so close to our hearts”.

Races start at around 10am and go on throughout the day. To find out more about Martin House, visit www.martinhouse.org.uk.

Picture: One of the teams competing in last year’s Martin House Dragon Boat Race at Roundhay Park.

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Martin House has been providing family-led care and support for babies, children and young people with life-limiting conditions for 35 years (life-limiting means the child or young person is not expected to live beyond young adulthood).

Every year we support over 425 children and young people, and their families plus more than 150 bereaved families across West, North and East Yorkshire, at our hospice, in hospitals and in families’ own homes.

The hospice, based in Boston Spa, has nine bedrooms in Martin House, and six in Whitby Lodge, which cares for teenagers and young people. Our services include respite stays, symptom control, emergency care, community care and end of life care.

Bereavement support is offered to families, often for two to three years after their child’s death. We also offer bereavement support to families whose child had a life-limiting condition but did not have the opportunity to use the hospice, or following a sudden death.

Martin House hosts one of only three specialist training places in the UK for consultants in paediatric palliative medicine, alongside placements in London (Great Ormond Street Hospital) and Cardiff.

There is no cost to any of the families using our services. It costs nearly £9 million a year to provide this care, the majority of which comes from voluntary donations and fundraising.

Registered Charity Number 517919

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