Supporters are rallying around St Michael’s Hospice , which has a fundraising shop in Rye’s Cinque Ports Street, after a fire last Saturday, July 11, left two Hastings patients dead. Another patient has been arrested on suspicion of arson and murder, but is too ill to be questioned. Residents and staff had to be evacuated and moved to alternative accommodation where Hospice staff are caring for them. For more information visit the shop or the website www.stmichaelshospice.org.
The fire has had a devastating impact on the care and services of both St Michael’s Hospice and The Sara Lee Trust, who are working closely together to ensure that patient care is prioritised and services maintained. The Sara Lee Trust will be working with both the Hospice and other local providers to ensure that its support and care remains available to all Hospice in-patients who have been relocated from the Hospice on a temporary basis.
The Trust is also putting contingency measures in place to ensure that it can continue to provide its specialist counselling and complementary therapy services for non-hospice patients from alternative locations for as long as its Hospice based therapy facilities remain inaccessible. They said “We are currently trying to secure alternative therapy and counselling space and would appeal to anyone who has access to centrally located therapy or counselling rooms that may be available over the next few weeks to please get in touch”.
Support at this time to enable the Trust to replace essential therapy equipment and related supplies and support the delivery of its services to both Hospice patients and local people would be gratefully received. To make an online donation, please visit https://www.justgiving.com/sltf/ . (Source: Sara Lee Trust)