Hartlepool family's fundraising tops £24,000 for Alice House Hospice after latest successful charity night

Dedicated fundraiser John Gough and his family, including partner Ann Bates, are celebrating another successful year of fundraising for Alice House Hospice in memory of John’s late brother and sister, Liam Gough and Angela O’Hara.

The annual Liam Gough memorial night is held every November at Hartlepool’s Rovers Quoit Club and has now raised around £24,000 to support hospice patients and their families.

In 2017 to commemorate the event’s 10th anniversary, John and Ann were presented with an Outstanding Achievement Award from Alice House.

The event marked the 11th year of the event and raised £2,501 for hospice care; the night included live music from The Valentines as well as a raffle, an auction and other fundraising activities.

John and Ann also made it into the shortlist for the fundraiser of the year category in the 2018 Best of Hartlepool Awards run by the Hartlepool Mail.

They have thanked all who supported the event, adding: “Thank you to Kai, Gemma and Leanne for the raffle and auction, Carl the auctioneer, Chris and Lynn for the tombola and Dr Ray for the generous donation, both families for the donation of prizes and a special mention to Chris, Sue and Cath who have donated prizes every year since the start.

“Thanks to John’s brothers Brendan and Michael who work hard to ensure the night is a success and to Alan Robinson, Rovers’ Secretary for the use of the room and a donation to the fund, Don and Maxine for security and help with the bingo.”

John also thanked The Valentines “who put on another great show – what a great set of lads to work with”.

John added “Another packed house, a wonderful night was had by all – thank you to all who attended.

"What a great pleasure for myself and Ann to hand over a nice cheque for the proceeds of all your hard work.”

Plans are underway for this year’s event and further details will follow.

Alice House Hospice, based in Wells Avenue, Hartlepool, is a registered charity offering specialist palliative care, counselling and support to hundreds of adults from Hartlepool and East Durham each year.

Those accessing Hospice services can be living with a variety of illnesses including Cancer, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder, Motor Neurone Disease, end stage heart disease and Parkinson’s.

Each person, along with their family and carers, will receive tailor-made packages to meet their physical, emotional, spiritual, psychological and cultural needs in an atmosphere of comfort and dignity.

It will cost £3.3 million to continue providing the current range of services this year, yet Alice House Hospice receives only 23% government funding.

The outstanding £2.5 million must be raised through the local community and other fundraising initiatives.