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BLOG: Plymouth Argyle Finn makes patient Michael’s day


“It’s an amazing place, and you never know who you’re going to meet!”

St Luke’s patient Michael Scott thought his eyes were playing tricks on him when he spotted top Plymouth Argyle player Finn Azaz walking onto the ward in our specialist unit at Turnchapel.

“Never in a million years did I think that would happen. I recognised him straight away because he has come back to Argyle again this season and he’s scored some goals in recent games. Last year I saw him play a couple of times and, of course, I’ve seen him in the media,” said an astonished and delighted Michael, who has taken his son and daughter to matches at Home Park in the past. “It was a complete surprise!”

Modest midfielder Finn has recently started volunteering for St Luke’s in his spare time. The 23-year-old stopped to chat with Michael and another patient on the ward during his recent visit to our HQ to help the fundraising team.

“Finn came over to talk to me and I told him my life story,” added Michael, 61, who was thrilled that he was able to meet the rising football star before being discharged home a couple of days later. “He came across as a very genuine and nice bloke and he asked me some very good questions. I wish him well for the rest of the season and hope Argyle do as well as they did last year when they went into the Championship.”

Liverpool-born Michael, who lives at Keyham, was in the Royal Navy for 34 years, retiring in 2012. He was working as a safety officer for cruise ships before his diagnosis with Stage 4 bowel cancer. He was seen and supported by St Luke’s hospital team at Derriford before being transferred to our inpatient unit for specialist symptom management. He and his family – wife, Angela, daughter Bethany and son Matthew, who has followed his dad into the Navy – will now have the support of our at home team.

“I’m looking forward to going home but I have thoroughly enjoyed the two weeks I’ve spent in St Luke’s as an inpatient. The people are fantastic, and I feel honoured to have been asked to come here,” said Michael, who was also thrilled to be allowed a couple of hospice visits from his chocolate Labrador Milo. “It’s an amazing place, and you never know who you’re going to meet!”

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BLOG: Harry’s BIG cycling challenge

An 8-year-old with big fundraising goals will be taking on the moors on Sunday 8 October at our Tour de Moor.

Harry Totham and his dad Paul will be taking part in our Tour de Moor for the first time this year, with high hopes to raise ‘BIG’ money for our compassionate care.

The self-confessed bike fanatics, from Elburton will be taking on our 33km route, which is brand new for this year, giving riders a fresh challenge to embark on.

Paul said: “Harry and I love anything and everything bike related. We are entered into the 33km race as Harry said he wanted to challenge himself, as in his words ‘11km wouldn’t be a challenge for him and he wanted to raise BIG money!’ If he could he probably would have gone for the 52km but there is always next year! (And knowing Harry this will be his challenge next time!).”

The pair have been making sure to test their pedals before the big day, with Harry attending a weekly cycling club as well as training with his dad.

“Harry and I go out on Mondays for a long ride. He trains at his cycling club Dartmoor Velo (which I am a coach for) on a Wednesday and Saturday and often races on Sundays at Regional events. It’s such a great friendly sport where the support of the other club members gives it a real family feel.”

So far, Harry and his dad have raised £350 on their JustGiving page, completely smashing the £100 fundraising target! This means they have been entered into our draw to win an exciting prize!

To follow their fundraising journey click here.

Like many of our riders at our Tour de Moor, Paul and Harry may not have seen our care in action first hand, but they have seen the impact our care teams have in the local community.

“We have been fortunate enough not to be impacted by anyone in our family or friends needing the support of St Luke’s, but Harry wanted to raise money for a worthy charity. Since moving down here 6 years ago from London, we have heard and seen the great work St Luke’s provides for local people in their time of need. So many people raise money for charity after they have been affected by something which is amazing, but how amazing is it for an 8-year-old wanting to raise money for a charity that has not affected his life.”

Our Tour de Moor is sponsored by Print, Copy, Scan Ltd. Time is running out to sign up, with spaces limited, you only have until Wednesday 4 October to register, so sign up now and get ready to take on Dartmoor.

Don’t forget that your registration fee only covers the costs of us running the event – it’s the money you raise through donations and sponsorship that will help us continue providing compassionate end of life care, free of charge, for everyone in our community who needs it.

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BLOG: Taking action and making an impact on National Inclusion Week

This week is National Inclusion Week 2023, where we celebrate inclusion and discover the transformative actions we can take to create inclusive workplaces.

This year’s theme is ‘Take Action, Make Impact’, which aims to get organisations thinking about their actions to support individuals in and outside the workplace.

Here at St Luke’s, we want to make sure that we are doing all we can to ensure that there are no barriers to not only our care, but our information and resources too.

One action we have taken is implementing the Recite Me assistive toolbar on our website to support everyone online.

We hope this positively impacts the experience that our website visitors have on our website as they utilise a range of customisable tools to read and understand our content in a way that best suits their needs.

You can choose from a range of tools including text-to-speech functionality, fully customisable styling features, reading aids and a translation tool with over 100 languages 65 of which are text-to-speech.

You can use Recite Me toolbar by clicking the ‘Accessibility’ button at the top of the page.

With over one billion people worldwide who live with some form of disability or impairment, it is vital that we prioritise inclusivity.

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BLOG: Saluting sponsors who keep our flagship fundraisers flying

Kind-hearted sponsors play a huge part in enabling St Luke’s key fundraising events to happen year after year, bringing in hundreds of thousands of pounds to support our compassionate end of life care.

Members of Plymouth’s independent business community whose generosity helps make our flagship fundraisers such a rip-roaring success were invited to our Turnchapel headquarters to receive a huge heartfelt thank you on behalf of everyone at St Luke’s Hospice Plymouth and those whose lives we touch.

The valued contributions of local firms Michael Spiers, Marchand Petit, Print Copy Scan, NFU Mutual Plymouth, Jem Scaffolding, Sir Fix-a-lock Ltd and Plymouth Golf Centre were saluted with a slap-up breakfast celebration in the conservatory.

It was an opportunity not only to receive personal thanks from St Luke’s Head of Fundraising Penny Hannah, events lead Georgina Mayhew, events advisor Chloe Symons and new partnerships advisor Kim Dover, but also to meet each other and reflect on how and why they support the hospice and what it means to them.

Jackie Spiers, widow of Michael Spiers, founder of the renowned Plymouth based jewellery retailer, attended the reception with marketing and PR manager Fiona Spear, proudly standing close to the Memory Leaf the family sponsors in memory of her husband.

Michael was cared for at Turnchapel and at home before his death in 1999 and since then the business has supported St Luke’s in many ways. They are currently the main sponsors of St Luke’s popular Midnight Walk, which this year has so far raised more than £125,000 for patient care.

Jackie said: “St Luke’s is our favourite charity from the heart because when Michael was here, he was happy. The first time he came he was apprehensive, but the was soon very content flirting with the nurses who were all lovely. There is a lovely family feel here.

“I won’t say Michael loved coming here, but he wasn’t worried or anxious about it because everyone was so kind. He was in the inpatient unit for about a week the month before he died to sort out his pain relief, and he later died at home.

“The staff are wonderful and do an unbelievably good job and that’s why we support St Luke’s and we will carry on sponsoring Midnight Walk.”

Gordon Maunder, company chairman of Marchand Petit estate agents, came to the breakfast with marketing manager Rebecca Martin. The company became co-sponsors of Midnight Walk in 2023, after Gordon’s mother, Christine, was cared for at home by St Luke’s leading up to her death in 2022.

Gordon said: “My mother always thought that giving was almost a selfish act because it makes you feel good yourself, and I agree with that. You never know when it might be you who needs St Luke’s help so, from a personal point of view, giving a little something is a good thing to do.”

Jo Young and Kerry Hogan are partners in NFU Mutual Plymouth and have been sponsoring St Luke’s Open Gardens scheme for the past three years, helping to raise £55,000 this season alone.

Jo and Kerry said: “Although we don’t have a personal connection to anyone who has been cared for by St Luke’s, a lot of our customers and members do and it’s a charity everyone knows about.

“For our business it’s about wanting to give something back to the community. We share the same values and the same geographical area as St Luke’s and our relationship with Open Gardens is a perfect fit for our business.”

Jonathan Philpotts, director of Plymouth Golf Centre, is a new sponsor who recently came on board to support St Luke’s corporate Golf Days and attended the breakfast with golf operations manager Sam Stephens.

Jonathan said: “I have always been very much in awe of what St Luke’s does. It is just incredible, and the staff always have a smile on their faces. St Luke’s has been very helpful to a lot of friends of mine. Then in 2019 my business partner John Spry had end of life care from St Luke’s at home.

“We had already supported St Luke’s for about ten years with little prizes here and there. When we were asked to come on board with the rebranding of St Luke’s Golf Days we thought it would be brilliant to get involved. As well as a support package we are giving a prize package worth around £1,200 for Golf Days held in aid of the hospice.

“We like to do our bit. I have always taken part in Men’s Day Out… and never made it back to the rugby club once!”

Karl Welburn of Print Copy Scan has sponsored our Tour de Moor cycle challenge for the past six events, as well as taking part himself.

“If you live in Plymouth you will know someone who has a relationship with St Luke’s. The events are good fun alongside something that is so sad. I just really enjoy it and the people you get to work with.”

Darren Toms, managing director of Jem Scaffolding is a familiar face for many people at St Luke’s, especially at Christmas time when he becomes a “secret Santa” donating gifts and festive food for patients and their families.

His company are long time sponsors of Men’s Day Out, St Luke’s most successful annual event which this year raised more than £140,000.

Darren became involved after his father, Jim, was cared for by St Luke’s at home and in our specialist unit in 2018.

Paul Montgomery, aka Sir Fix-a-lock Ltd, supports several of St Luke’s flagship events at once by sponsoring all the signage used for Men’s Day Out, Tour de Moor and Midnight Walk, as well as flying the charity’s flag in a host of other ways through the year.

St Luke’s Penny Hannah said: “You are all so important to us. In the past year you have helped us to raise more than £600,000 and that represents a huge amount of care for our patients and their families. We can’t thank you enough.”

If your business would like to get involved, there’s a host of opportunities available to support St Luke’s and our events through sponsorship and regular giving, and we’re always ready to listen to your ideas. Please contact our fundraising team at partnerships@stluke-hospice.org.uk

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BLOG: Channel swim challenge for our compassionate care

Endless miles of water and only yourself for company can be a daunting prospect for many. But for some St Luke’s supporters, a cross channel swim is at the top of their fundraising bucket list.

Mike Goodman, from Saltash, took on the ultimate challenge of swimming across the channel for St Luke’s last week.

Mike, who you may recognise as being the manager at the Embankment Road Co-op, swam the gruelling 20.5 miles of open water between England and France all in aid of St Luke’s.

It took Mike an incredible 14 hours and 45 minutes to complete the swim.

Mike, who has always had a love of swimming, decided to take on the epic challenge after his friend and training partner, Neil Brinkworth, who had completed it himself four years earlier – raising a staggering amount for St Luke’s – gave him the push of encouragement.

He said: “I have always been a keen swimmer, starting at an early age and joining Plymouth Leander Swimming Club. I was never a fast swimmer but I enjoyed the challenge even then of distance swimming and getting my two mile badge.

“My good friend and training partner, Neil encouraged me to do the swim after we completed the channel as part of a four man relay, going on to swim from Land’s End to the Isles of Scilly as a team of six and becoming World Record holders for the fastest time, and more recently in June this year, the same team completed the North Channel, from Northern Ireland to Scotland.”

Mike, who has always been a supporter of St Luke’s – even kindly donating milk for refreshments at our most recent Open Garden – has already managed to raise over £3,200 for our patient care on his JustGiving page.

He said: “St Luke’s has been a great support to many people I know, including relatives, so I wanted to fundraise for such a great local cause.”

Swimming the channel is no easy feat, with Mike having to take on a vigorous training schedule to prepare for the big day.

“Training wise, I’ve been swimming twice a week for an hour early in the mornings, concentrating on technique as well as speed work and two sessions a week in the gym focusing on stretching, to help prevent injury and improve flexibility and range of movement. I have been sea swimming normally once a week and then more every other weekend when I’m not working full time.

“My training peaked with six-hour sea swims, or if time and weather did not permit, three hours in the pool followed by three hours in the sea the following day.”

But the training was all worth it in the end, especially when Mike was able to see the French coast on the horizon after hours of physical exertion.

“The toughest part was going through the 6/7 hour pain barrier as this was the longest time on my training swims. Once past that and up to 10 hours I knew I had passed the separation zone (mid channel) and that as minimum I was half-way, so psychologically it was all downhill from there with a decreasing amount of hours.

“The magic was seeing the French coast and being told by your crew, ‘This is your last feed,’ knowing you had less than one hour to go! My team got to swim in and film me finishing on the beach and celebrate the crossing.”

Thank you and well done to Mike for this incredible achievement. Thanks to his dedication and hard work, we can be there for even more patients and families who desperately need our care and support.

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BLOG: Ross’s decade of cycling the Moor for St Luke’s

This year’s Tour de Moor marks a special occasion for one of our dedicated riders.

Ten years ago, Ross Blackmore decided to get on his bike for our compassionate care, fast forward a decade and he is ready to take on his 10th charity ride on Sunday 8 October.

Ross, from Down Thomas, is a self-confessed cycling fanatic. Being no stranger to mountain bike racing, Ross will be taking on our 52km ‘Beast mode’ on the day, a tough on and off road adventure to test the endurance and skill level of even the most experienced of cyclists.

Like many of our riders, the story behind Ross’ initial participation lies in memory of his grandad, Cyril Hollow. Cyril was cared for by St Luke’s 11 years ago at the age of 83, after being diagnosed with lung cancer. He spent his last few weeks at our specialist unit at Turnchapel.

“I take part in the Tour de Moor to raise money for St Luke’s because of grandad being in there, to continue to raise money. The care that St Luke’s goes to, looking after people at the end of their life. Nothing is ever too much trouble. They made me and my family feel at ease and kept us updated all the time.”

So what keeps Ross coming back year on year? “For me it is getting out and exploring Dartmoor. It is nice to be out enjoying the fresh air as well as for the challenge and pushing your limits.

“The day itself is fantastic, there is a great atmosphere, I love it. Chatting to people on the way around, laughing, banter, it’s just a great event.”

Will you be joining Ross on the Moors in October? With just a month to go until the boldest cycling event in the South West, sponsored by Print, Copy, Scan Ltd, now is the time to sign up.

However, like Ross, it is the money you raise in sponsorship that makes the real difference. Providing hospice care free of charge to our patients is something we feel so strongly about. But this is only possible due to the kindness and generosity of you, our supporters.

If every Tour de Moor cyclist commits to raising at least £100, we’ll collectively have enough to care for 100 families at home at the most crucial of times.

What’s more if you raise over £100 in sponsorship and have paid it in by 26 November 2023 you will be entered into a draw to win an exciting prize! Simply set up your JustGiving page when you sign up and see how much you can raise!

Signed up already and can’t wait to get those pedals turning? Cyclists can now download the GPX route for both the 33km and 52km routes from our website to get you kitted out for the big day.

Sign up for our Tour de Moor here.

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BLOG: Sparksy’s legacy for St Luke’s Pilgrims fans

Lifelong Plymouth Argyle fan Ray Rogers became a VIP for the day when he was treated to prime seats for the match against Blackburn Rovers last weekend thanks to a heart-warming new regular guest ticket arrangement between St Luke’s Hospice Plymouth and the club.

The 77-year-old grandfather, who is receiving care at home from St Luke’s specialist nursing team, was the first to benefit from the new initiative set up in memory of much-missed club ambassador and commentator Gordon Sparks, and sponsored by PLG Consultants, Devon-based disability and accessible property specialists.

In a move that makes it possible for fans like Ray to witness their team in action at Home Park, two privileged accessible seats have been reserved for a St Luke’s patient or family member and their guest for every Argyle home game in the 2023-24 Sky Bet Championship season.

Not only will they have a great view from PLG’s wheelchair accessible branded viewing platform in the Beacon Electrical Lower Mayflower stand, but they’ll also have the dedicated services of volunteer Elliott Darcy to make sure their visit goes smoothly, plus vouchers for refreshments, and regular check-ins on the day from St Luke’s nurse specialist and Pilgrims’ fan Debbie Hutchinson.

Ray, who lives at Southway, has been an Argyle fan since he was a child and his dad used to take him to Home Park. He’d been a regular season ticket holder until this year when his health deteriorated, and he was thrilled to be able to attend a match again.

“It’s difficult for me to get there now. I can’t handle the steps,” said Ray, who has been treated for colon cancer.  He was accompanied on Saturday by his youngest grandson, Dylan, 19.

“Just being there was great. And they had a good result as well – 3-0 against Blackburn Rovers. I really enjoyed the day and the fresh air. I had a nice comfy chair. I shared a pasty with Dylan and had a cup of hot Bovril. Everything about it was wonderful.”

Ray also got to meet and have his photo taken with former Argyle Captain Gary Sawyer and was given a match programme.

Ray’s wife, Wendy, said they were delighted when St Luke’s clinical nurse specialist Alex Chapman visited them at home and told them Ray could have the tickets.

“She said they were VIP tickets and that he would be met, and they would provide a wheelchair,” said Wendy, who drove Ray and Dylan to the game. “Everyone was so helpful when we got there, including the car park attendants who found us a space. Elliott was a very nice chap and Ray was really well looked after.”

The seeds for the new scheme were sown when Sparksy was receiving care last year from St Luke’s both at home and in the hospice’s specialist unit. He chatted to clinical nurse specialist Ali Griffiths about their mutual love of Argyle and how he wanted to make it possible for patients who are Pilgrims fans to get to the club’s home games. Almost a year after the popular BBC Radio Devon broadcaster’s death the idea has now blossomed into reality, with the help of key partners and a willing volunteer.

Daniel Pippen, Argyle Supporter Relations Manager, said: “Our teams are passionate about delivering the very best experiences for our supporters, and this initiative will help us to do exactly that for those cared for by St Luke’s. We know this will make a real difference to those who will visit us through the scheme and hope it will stand as a fitting legacy for our beloved Sparksy.”

Phill Gill, PLG Consultants Managing Director, added: “We have been looking at ways of supporting the club in a way that fits the work we do. Having listened to and been friends with Sparksy for many years and seen the tremendous help St Luke’s gave to my best friend’s sister earlier this year it felt like a great initiative to be a part of.”

Purely by chance, 28-year-old volunteer Elliott, a boxing coach from Plympton, contacted Argyle to volunteer at exactly the right time to help get the programme off the ground. A keen Pilgrims supporter, he had been moved by the story of young Sunderland FC fan Bradley Lowery who had terminal cancer and was helped to get to as many games as possible, and he said he was keen to support something similar in Plymouth.

“I contacted Argyle to suggest this, and Dan told me about the scheme being set up in memory of Gordon Sparks. I never expected it to get to this point – it’s great that it is actually happening. I’ve agreed to be there on a voluntary basis for every home game to meet the St Luke’s guests and look after them from start to finish,” said Elliott. “Kindness costs nothing, but I haven’t done anything like this before, so it’s very new to me and I’m finding my feet. It was really great to meet Ray, and Dylan did a fantastic job looking after his granddad.”

St Luke’s Head of Fundraising, Penny Hannah, added: “This is very special! If someone is a fan and have been for years, they do not want to miss out and often one of their last wishes is to be at Home Park. All of us at St Luke’s Hospice Plymouth, and especially our nurses, are overwhelmed by the kindness and generosity shown by Argyle and PLG, by creating this gift to the patients in our care and their families who wish to get to a match, just as Sparksy wanted.”

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BLOG: Nurse Julie calls time on her lifelong passion

It takes a certain kind of person to be an end of life nurse, according to Julie Davies, who has retired after 14 years on the frontline of St Luke’s services as one of our expert Clinical Nurse Specialists.

“You need to be able to cope emotionally and psychologically with this kind of work. There isn’t a happy outcome, but you can give people a peaceful death, and make sure their families are all right along the way,” reflects Julie, a familiar and comforting face for so many people both inside and outside the organisation. “You have to be empathetic, not just show sympathy.”

Palliative care has been her passion and vocation for as long as she can remember and it’s a choice she has never shied away from. Her first experience of caring for the dying was at the Trinity Hospice in her hometown of Blackpool where she nursed for several years.

“The best thing is about palliative care is having time to be with patients and their families and letting people know they are being listened to. Even on my busiest days here I would never make a patient feel that I am rushed for time. I feel privileged to be part of their journey.”

From Trinity, she spread her wings to take her experience out into the local community and the pressured environment of district nursing, where she continued her special interest in caring for people reaching the end of their lives.

Blackpool was home and she had brought up her three sons there, but when new love came calling in 2009 Julie decamped 325 miles to Plymouth to set up home with her husband, Barry.

That was also the year she first came to work at St Luke’s and she has never looked back. After spending nine months as part of the specialist unit team, she became a CNS, visiting patients in their own homes or care homes, going over and above to help manage their symptoms, make sure they are in the right place to receive the best care, and give support to their family members.

“That’s where I have been ever since, and I love my job. I work with a fabulous team in a good, supportive network and I have made a lot of friends here and good working relationships all over the organisation… everyone at St Luke’s has a role to play.”

Julie admits it hasn’t always been an easy job, and she has witnessed some changes over the years.

“We are never going to earn what the NHS pay, but you don’t take this job on for the money. You have to have the passion. It is sometimes difficult, but you push through together. I have loved working here.

“Years ago I think we supported patients from earlier in their journey and they came to be reliant on us for a longer time. People are a lot more poorly when they come to us now and it’s a bit of a juggling act. We have got more staff, but the role is becoming more demanding.”

The pandemic was one of the most challenging periods she can remember, and its legacy still remains.

“When Covid came it was terrible. It was very worrying. No one knew how it was going to affect everything.

“I’m proud that we went out and supported people in that situation when other services weren’t available to them. We had a lot of referrals coming through for very poorly people. It impacted on us as a team both physically and emotionally… it all filters down and has an impact on you. You found yourself asking why patients were not diagnosed earlier and why were we not involved earlier.”

In spite of her passion and drive, Julie has always recognised the importance of having “switch-offs” that take your mind away from the job and give you some down time.

“Mine have been my holidays. My husband and I have gone away four or five times a year to places like Greece, the Caribbean and the Maldives so I could recharge before coming back to work. We did sightseeing and city tours years ago, so now we just like to relax – swim, snorkel, eat, drink and be merry!

“I’ve learned that you don’t know what’s around the corner so you have to grab life and enjoy it while you can.”

Julie is definitely ready to wind down a bit and concentrate on other priorities in her life.

“I’ve worked since I was 11 – doing two paper rounds for my parents’ newsagent shop in Blackpool – and I was cleaning hotels aged 14… at 63 I want a little more time for me.”

She’ll also have more opportunities to be with her three children and five grandchildren.

“They’re all boys – including a new one born a few weeks ago who melts my heart. Some of them live in Portsmouth and some in Blackpool and I travel to see them. That’s another reason I’m retiring because I want more time with them and now I’ll be able to stay a bit longer instead of having to rush back for work.”

There may be fewer foreign holidays in future, but Julie has some other goals in the pipeline, including re-joining the Cheezifit exercise group and exploring Plymouth and Cornwall a bit more.

“After living here all this time, I haven’t actually been to the beach yet!”

It’s going to be hard to wrench herself away from St Luke’s, and although she officially retired this week, it’s going to be an unhurried exit for Julie, who will be around, on and off for a few more weeks.

“I’m going to do a little bit of bank work at St Luke’s to support the whole team while some new staff get settled in, so it will be a gradual retirement for me,” she says.

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