Hospices thank Leyton Orient for funds

TWO LOCAL HOSPICES – Haven House Children’s Hospice and St Joseph’s Hospice – have thanked League Two football club Leyton Orient for raising funds to support their valuable work.

Staff, family, friends and volunteers came to Orient and planted themselves in the Fans for Diversity Hub in the East stand, from where they worked to raise awareness of the hospices and their work.

Some of them also went out onto the pitch, acting as flag bearers and mounting a guard of honour. A lucky few entertained the crowd at half-time by lining up to take penalties against Club mascot Theo. Bucket collections raised over £400 for each hospice.

Lindy Hunt, Head of Community Engagement at Haven House, wrote the following message in the Diversity Hub Guest Book: “As ever, it’s been a pleasure and a privilege to have the support of this wonderful Club. Haven House Children’s Hospice appreciates so much the opportunity to collect here with our buckets, but it is also a highlight for our families who come along in their wheelchairs. They are always made welcome, treated with dignity and feel so proud to parade the pitch and take a penalty or two. Here’s to next time!” Haven buckets raised a total of £433.48 thanks to the generosity of fans.

On behalf of St. Joseph’s, Emma Harris, Community Fundraising Co-ordinator, said, “Thank you so much. We thoroughly enjoyed the day. It was lovely and we were amazed by the crowds! We would like to thank Leyton Orient and the fans for having us once again and helping raise a fantastic total of £405.96.”

The Club has vowed to continue to help the hospices in the future.

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