COMMUTERS are being asked to donate the price of their journey to work to give a hospice’s emergency appeal more drive.
St Teresa’s Hospice appealed to the community for help after coronavirus crippled its ability to raise funds.
St Teresa’s Hospice needs £3m a year to continue its work to provide a raft of core services free of charge to patients and their families who are affected by life-limiting illness in Darlington, South Durham and North Yorkshire.
It relies almost completely on donations but most of its traditional fundraising events have had to be cancelled because of the coronavirus crisis and all its charity shops, except eBay, have had to close.
In the latest innovation to raise desperately needed funds, officials at St Teresa’s Hospice are asking commuters to donate the cost of a tank of fuel or the value of bus or train fares now they are not travelling because of the lockdown. They can do this through the Just Giving Page https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/HugToStTs.
Other recent fundraisers have included asking café-goers to donate the money they would normally spend on a cuppa, joining the virtual dogshow #StTsPawtraits and becoming an official Friend of the Hospice.
St Teresa’s Hospice chief executive Jane Bradshaw said: “Our community has responded wonderfully to our appeals for help and every penny they have donated so far allows us to continue helping families at such a difficult time.
“Commuters could have a huge impact on our plight if they would consider donating just some of the money they normally spend getting to and from work.”