fbpx

Run, Rudolph, Run! School children take on festive fun run for hospice care

19th December 2024

St Luke’s Rudolph Run 2024

Local primary schools have been dashing and prancing around the playground as they take part in St Luke’s brand new Rudolph Run.

The festive fun run is for schools to take part in while raising funds for the care services we provide in the local community.

Schools from across the city and the surrounding area have been taking part in the run, with the children encouraged to get sponsorship from family members, while gaining an understanding of the work St Luke’s does in their community. So far, more than £3,500 has been raised from the Rudolph Run which is enough for us to provide a package of care at home for at least 3 families.

Holy Cross Catholic Primary School

One of the schools taking part was Holy Cross Catholic Primary School in St Judes, with nearly 300 pupils running through Beaumont Park wearing a pair of reindeer antlers they had each decorated themselves ahead of the event.

Partnerships Lead at St Luke’s, Sarah Wallis said: “Holy Cross Catholic Primary School haven’t just chosen to do the Rudolph Run, they are also giving us their collections from their Nativity Plays and a Carol Concert at St Boniface Cathedral as well. They know just how vital St Luke’s is to their community and have been really committed supporters of St Luke’s for a number of years. They have also had a couple of super fundraisers in the school who have contributed over £100 each to the school’s fundraising efforts. It was really quite something to see all three hundred Holy Cross children running through Beaumont Park, it was magical!”

Headteacher Finola Gill said: “As a Catholic school, the principles of Catholic Social Teaching are central to our curriculum and looking after others by supporting charities such as St Luke’s Hospice Plymouth, is important to us. At Holy Cross, we encourage the children to look beyond their own needs and wants and to consider those less fortunate.

“St Luke’s is close to our hearts as it is a local charity which goes above and beyond to serve the community and this is why 288 children and over 20 members of staff put on their Christmas jumpers and completed the Rudolph Run. They raised a phenomenal amount of money through sponsorship and we are extremely grateful to all those who supported us.” 

Boringdon Primary School

Pupils at Boringdon Primary School in Plympton took part in the run on Wednesday 18 December, raising more than £2,300, providing a care at home package for at least two families.

Year 5 teacher and PE Lead Naomi Campbell said: “St Luke’s is a local charity and we have had families in the past involved with them so it is a charity really close to the school’s heart so it was really good to be involved in the Rudolph Run.

“St Luke’s is a charity the children hear about, they’ve got parents who have perhaps done other bits and pieces for St Luke’s and will be aware of it in that way. By taking part it empowers children, they feel they are helping a local charity like their parents might have done in the past, while making them aware for if anything was to happen in the future.

“It’s coming up to Christmas and for the children as much as they’re thinking about Santa and things arriving for them, it’s also a time of giving and showing the children that by doing the Rudolph run we’re giving back to help two families in the local area is really important.

“We planned for the children to do ‘Rudolph says’ during the run, they also skipped, hopped, jogged, danced, wiggled, jiggled and some even rolled. We just had a great time moving around and raising funds for St Luke’s.”

Thank you

Other schools participating in the Rudolph Run include: Horrabridge Primary School, Milton Abbot Primary School, St Mellion Primary School, St Peter’s RC Primary School, Pilgrim Primary School , St German Primary School, Darite Primary School , Marine Academy Primary School Running Club and College Road Primary School.

Sarah added: “All of the schools taking part have been completely amazing. When I have visited their schools to talk about St Luke’s and our work in their communities, I have been so impressed with the childrens’ care and compassion, and their inciteful and thoughtful questions about the hospice. Their fundraising efforts will make a difference to patients and their families, even to other children facing a difficult Christmas without someone they love or even facing a last Christmas as a family together. I am looking forward to visiting the schools in the New Year to thank them personally for their fundraising and have also invited them to visit us at our specialist unit so they can see first hand what a difference their amazing fundraising is having on our care.

“Thank you also goes to Delt Shared Services for generously supporting our Rudolph Run and providing all the print materials, helping to bring a fun and engagement element to the children participating. Making the children aware of St Luke’s in this fun way, encourages ongoing support from them as they grow up, while giving them a broader understanding of the work we do.”

Thank you to all the schools taking part in our Rudoph Run, we have loved seeing all the fabulous photos. Make sure to tag us on Facebook in all your photos from the event. You can pay in your fundraising here. If you are interested in fundraising for St Luke’s at your school, we would love to hear from you. Contact us at funadmin@stlukes-hospice.org.uk.

Pay in your Rudolph Run sponsorship money Hold your own fundraising event

Related articles

, ,

BLOG: For the love of dogs…

At St Luke’s, taking good care of our patients is about paying attention to what really matters to them… and that includes their important relationships with the dogs that share their lives. Worrying about what will happen to their faithful canine companion can weigh heavily on a patient’s mind in their final days and weeks. Partners, family members or friends are often only too happy to take on a loved one’s pet, but that’s not always possible. That’s when our compassionate teams go above and beyond to help find the right solution. They’ve even been known to adopt a patient’s dog themselves. Community team specialist health care assistant Marianne Smith stepped in a couple of months ago to find a new owner for patient Christine’s little dog, Roddy. The cute and fluffy white Kokoni had already had a difficult start in life. He was found as a stray puppy on the streets of Cyprus, and he’d been Christine’s loyal pal for around four years.
, ,

BLOG: How Queen’s Nurse Debbie is doing Al proud

When St Luke’s clinical nurse specialist Debbie Hutchinson received her prestigious Queen’s Nurse badge and certificate at a ceremony in London recently, there’s one special person she would have loved to be with her to witness the occasion. Debbie’s late husband, Al, was always 100 per cent behind her ambitions, encouraging her to go for her dreams, and always over the moon when she reached her goals. Knowing that he would have been bursting with pride was one of the main reasons she decided to go through the rigorous assessment process to become a Queen’s Nurse.
, ,

BLOG: Fill a box to support our compassionate care

Traditionally, there’s only one ‘Boxing Day’ per year, but that’s set to change when St Luke’s introduces a new concept to its large, city-centre retail outlet in January. From Saturday 4 January, customers browsing the good-quality, preloved clothing on the rails at our Western Approach charity shop will be invited to ‘fill a box for a fiver’ or a larger one for a tenner. Not only will the scheme save buyers precious pounds as they replenish their wardrobes, it will also help protect the planet by keeping more clothes out of landfill*. And crucially, as with every sale the shop makes, funds raised will support the specialist end-of-life care we provide for local families affected by terminal illness.
, ,

BLOG: Jenny’s 30 years of making someone’s day a bit better

These days Jenny works part-time, three days a week. In her spare time she loves to go on adventures with her husband, Mark, in the campervan he converted himself. “I love to travel and my husband flies paragliders, so we often end up going to flying sites around Wales, Cornwall or Scotland, and sometimes abroad to The Alps.” Jenny doesn’t fly these days, but she especially enjoys long walks with her dog, Dylan the labradoodle, who she describes as “adorable”.
, ,

BLOG: Kim’s celebrating precious memories of Chris at Christmas…with a little help from St Luke’s

Christmas can be an especially tough time when someone very close to you has died. You know the festive season won’t ever be the same without your special loved one. That’s something Kim Marshall is acutely aware of following the death of his dear wife, Chris, at their home in Hooe, last January, aged 71. But, after receiving personal support from St Luke’s, Kim feels he’ll be able to treat his first Christmas alone as an opportunity to shine a light on Chris’s life, reflecting on the happy relationship the avid Plymouth Argyle fans shared together for 32 years.
, ,

BLOG: Run, Rudolph, Run! School children take on festive fun run for hospice care

Local primary schools have been dashing and prancing around the playground as they take part in St Luke’s brand new Rudolph Run. The festive fun run is for schools to take part in while raising funds for the care services we provide in the local community. Schools from across the city and the surrounding area have been taking part in the run, with the children encouraged to get sponsorship from family members, while gaining an understanding of the work St Luke’s does in their community. So far, more than £3,500 has been raised from the Rudolph Run which is enough for us to provide a package of care at home for at least 3 families.
, ,

BLOG: Top takeaways from inspiring Hospice UK Conference

They say there’s strength, as well as safety, in numbers, especially when you’re in the company of people who share the same aspirations and goals. That must explain the overwhelming sense of empowerment, togetherness and possibility at the recent Hospice UK conference, where hundreds of us gathered with the common aim of making sure excellent palliative and end of life care is available for everyone who could benefit from it, wherever they live in the UK and whatever their circumstances.
, ,

BLOG: Coping at Christmas

Bereavement is hard at any time of year, but the festive season - and Christmas itself -can feel particularly challenging for anyone experiencing grief. No-one understands this more than us. As well as providing specialist end-of-life care for people with terminal illness, we offer their family members bereavement support too. This week (2-8 December) is National Grief Awareness Week, in association with The Good Grief Trust. The aim of the week is to raise awareness of grief, highlight the support on offer and to normalise conversations around it.
, ,

BLOG: It’s party time! Treat yourself to a classy charity shop outfit that looks good and does good

“What am I going to wear?” It’s a cry that rings out across the land every year when the festive party season is on the horizon. The countdown is on to find something elegant and fashionable, that suits you and your budget. Before you start scrolling online, did you know that a trip to your local St Luke’s charity shop could be the answer to all your ballgown and frock dilemmas, not forgetting fancy shoes, evening bags and a touch of bling to complete the look? Partywear – along with Christmas jumpers – is a major focus for our shop managers and volunteers at this time of year. Their mission is to have you looking a million dollars for your special do, without breaking the bank.

Our Care

Support us

Courses

Information

BLOG: Top takeaways from inspiring Hospice UK ConferenceBLOG: Kim’s celebrating precious memories of Chris at Christmas…with a little...