Don your Jolly Jumper for City Hospice this Christmas

Local Welsh charity, City Hospice, is encouraging people (and their pets) to don their festive gear for its Jolly Jumper campaign this Christmas.

The aim of the campaign is to bring a little joy to the festive period, while raising much needed funds for the Cardiff-based hospice.

Those taking part are encouraged to wear a ‘jolly’ jumper on a day of their choice, festive headgear if they wish, and even involve their pets in the celebrations. Local schools and workplaces are invited to dig out their jolly jumpers as a great was of brightening up their surroundings over the festive period, and, although many offices are sitting empty this year, workers are encouraged to do the same for a Zoom call with their colleagues.

City Hospice needs to raise £2million a year to provide the level of care it offers. As Cardiff’s local hospice, the charity provides home-based specialist palliative care to 550 patients at any one time.

City Hospice provides nursing and essential care to people throughout the capital who are living with life limiting and terminal illness, such as cancer, dementia, motor neurone disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Amy-Claire, 25, is a patient of City Hospice and is looking forward to celebrating Jolly Jumper Day 2020. She has been under palliative and hospice care since childhood, due to living with a complex condition, including seizures, spasms, and chronic pain that requires regular input from the palliative care team. Amy-Claire said: “I absolutely love Christmas; Christmas music, Christmas films, Christmas night’s out, Christmas food, and Christmas jumpers! Why not wear one this year to support this amazing cause?

“City Hospice will continue supporting me and my family over Christmas; it’ll be sad not being able to show them my Christmas outfits like I usually do. Christmas this year will be hard for me and my family; we’re used to having a house full of people to celebrate seeing the end of another year. But we’ll still be celebrating!

“Without the support of City Hospice, my life and the lives of my loved ones would be very different, and far poorer. City Hospice allows me to plan for a good death whilst doing everything we can to ensure I live a good life. It’s a truly remarkable place full of truly remarkable people, doing an incredible job during especially tough times that supports and enable people like me to live our lives. Please help such an amazing service to continue help people like me this Christmas.”

Liz Andrews, Chief Executive of City Hospice, said: “Never before have we so desperately needed to start getting jolly for Christmas as we have this year.

“Christmas jumper days have become popular in recent years, and we’re really encouraging people to support their local hospice when organising theirs this year.

“We’ve even put together a Christmas quiz for colleagues and families unable to celebrate together physically, as well as festive recipes and other fundraising ideas. It’s really simple to get involved, and will hopefully lift people’s spirits this year, all while raising the funds we so desperately need to continue to provide the essential care we provide.”

Organisations already signed up for Jolly Jumper Day 2020 and hoping to raise money whilst spreading some festive cheer include Hodge Bank, Dunelm and Wessex Garages, as well as Howell’s School, Llandaff.

Jolly Jumper Day 2020 is sponsored by Western Power Distribution.

For more information, to download your Jolly Jumpers pack, poster and quiz, and to donate to the campaign, visit https://www.cityhospice.org.uk/jolly-jumpers/