AFC Bournemouth Cherries’ Community Fund donates £1,000 to Dorset hospice charity, Lewis-Manning Hospice Care.
Due to these unprecedented times, AFC Bournemouth chose to donate funding to five local hospices.
Said Jeff Mostyn Chair of AFC Bournemouth; “We’ve seen the work that Lewis-Manning Hospice Care does locally, and we know that they are dealing with some of the most challenging times due to COVID-19. The club decided to support five local hospices through its Community Fund because they are very much in the news at present, coping with challenging and unprecedented times due to coronavirus.
AFC Bournemouth provided this funding from its Cherries Community Fund, which predominately offers financial assistance to projects that help to develop young people and vulnerable groups, or those that promote sport and a healthy lifestyle in the Dorset area. The usual Cherries Community Fund application process for the last part of the season has had to be put on hold for the moment due to COVID-19, so they decided to allocate the funding to Lewis-Manning Hospice Care and some local hospice care charities.
Said Head of AFC Bournemouth’s Community Sports’ Trust Steve Cuss; “We’ve supported hospice charities locally as these are unparalleled circumstances. Usually we go through applications for up to £1,000 worth of funding, which are judged by a panel which includes myself and the club’s chairman Jeff Mostyn. The funding is made possible thanks to supporters who donate to the AFC Bournemouth’s popular half-time Community Draw, which gives supporters the chance to win cash prizes while helping the local community through the Fund. The Fund, set up by the club in 2016, has provided financial assistance to an array of local projects that help to develop young people and vulnerable groups, or those that promote sport and a healthy lifestyle in the area of Dorset.
AFC Bournemouth chairman Jeff Mostyn said: “Due to the current situation our quarterly meetings, which discuss grant applications, cannot take place, therefore we wanted to ensure we allocated existing funding to five deserving charities. Lewis-Manning was chosen because it does such great work within the community but we realise that its fundraising streams and opportunities will have been affected at this time. Hopefully this donation can help during such a challenging period.”
From its new premises, at Longfleet Road, Poole, Lewis-Manning Hospice Care exists to help the people of Poole, Purbeck and East Dorset with life limiting illnesses. Its aim is to increase physical and social well-being, reduce isolation and loneliness, support people to stay in their homes longer, and alleviate the huge pressures on family and carers.
Chief Executive at Lewis-Manning Hospice Care, Clare Gallie, said: “We are delighted and grateful to receive such a wonderful boost at a time when not only are fundraising activities postponed, but when our team are working harder than ever, to ensure local people are given the very best care we can deliver.
Our nursing team are working ceaselessly to support patients and adapt our care and services during the ongoing pandemic.
We know it cant be easy for AFC Bournemouth as they are missing out on the football match season and so its wonderful they recognise that every penny matters and we promise this donation will be put to good use and we’ll extend an invite to the committee and the team when its safe to do so, so they can see more about our work and where the funds go.”
For more information visit http://www.lewis-manning.co.uk
Registered Charity No. 1120193