Slaithwaite Business Ladies & The Hairy Bikers

Last year, Kirkwood Hospice was approached by a wonderful woman, Heather Croft, who had lost her mum in the Hospice and wanted to do something in return for the care she had received.  Heather got together a group of vibrant and savvy women who all own businesses in Slaithwaite and decided to do a “How to look good naked” calendar for the Hospice.  The calendar was very popular and raised over £600 for Kirkwood Hospice and also Waves, a wonderful adult learning centre in Slaithwaite. Since then, the relationship with the Slaithwaite ladies has gone from strength to strength, with joint fundraising initiatives such as ladies nights, a swing time ball and much more to come.

Meanwhile, totally out of the blue, Heather was contacted by the Hairy Bikers BBC2 production team who had seen information about this group of ladies on the internet, and asked if the ladies would be kind enough to take part in a production on setting up a community Meals on Wheels service.  The ladies were very keen on this idea and agreed to take part without a question!  Following a month of filming in March this year, the programme is on air on 27th September at 9pm. 

Although the original connection with the Hospice was through the promotion and sales of the calendar, Suzanne Barton, Community Fundraiser at the Hospice has maintained and grown the relationship with the Slaithwaite ladies and is now actively involved in the Meals on Wheels scheme herself as a volunteer, delivering meals to recipients as and when her diary permits.  Much more fundraising is planned for the future in order to contribute towards patient care at the Hospice and also for social events for the recipients of the Meals on Wheels.

For further information please contact Suzanne Barton at the Hospice on 01484-557911 or e-mail at suzanneb@kirkwoodhospice.co.uk