Slimming World members raise £8,000 for local hospice
Slimming World members in East Lancashire have raised more than £8,000 and come third in a competition to collect the most money for their local hospice this year.
Marisa Bannan, who runs a Slimming World group in Hyndburn, and colleague Gemma Lewis, from Blackburn, were thrilled to reach the top three of 18 groups taking part in the East Lancashire Hospice Corporate Challenge.
They raised a total of £8,362.39 by organising raffles, sponsored walks, a cabaret evening and bring-and-buy sales with their members. And they’ve already signed up for next year, including planning a Zumbathon and other events.
Marisa became acutely aware of the work the hospice does when her best friend, Collette, was admitted with terminal breast cancer, and signed up to the three-month challenge after her death. She says: “The hospice were fantastic with her care, treatment and the way in which they supported her children. It was humbling to see the care they provided and when talking to one of the pallative team, I found out how vital fundraising is in helping the hospice do the amazing work that they do.”
It’s a cause close to a lot of people’s hearts and our members got fully on board.
As part of the challenge, those taking part are given £50 and challenged to turn the sum into as much money as possible. It’s the first year since 2019 that the challenge has taken place due to the Covid pandemic.
Marisa adds: “Lots of our members have experience of the hospice, either from being supported during the last weeks of a loved one’s life or from using the hospice’s wellbeing and holistic services to help them cope with their own medical conditions. So, it’s a cause close to a lot of people’s hearts and our members got fully on board – the response was fantastic.”
Overall the corporate challenge raised £60,000 for East Lancashire Hospice with the overall winners Northcote Manor raising over £20,000 and Pendle Doors in second place after raising over £8,000.
And on Marisa’s last visit to the hospice to deliver the money, she saw a vacancy for a fundraising role and, after working in education for 16 years, she’s now a fundraiser for East Lancashire Hospice. She says: “With this job and my role as a Slimming World Consultant, I’m so lucky to always be doing something I feel passionately about, whether that’s raising money for a patient or family in need or helping people to transform their health by losing weight.”
Slimming World was founded by Margaret Miles-Bramwell OBE in Derbyshire in 1969 and has become the UK and Ireland’s leading weight loss organisation with more people choosing to attend a Slimming World group each week than any other weight loss programme. We support hundreds of thousands of people, both in our groups and online, to lose weight and to adopt new habits to stay slim for life.
Over the years our founding principles haven’t changed:
· Our unique programme is based on a powerfully motivating support system called IMAGE (Individual Motivation and Group Experience) Therapy. Underpinned by a deep understanding of the psychology of overweight people, and incorporating the most effective sustainable behaviour change techniques, IMAGE Therapy is designed to inspire and motivate slimmers to make positive changes and to develop new, healthier habits around food and activity.
· Food Optimising is our healthy eating plan, based on the liberating concept of Free Food. We encourage our members to fill up on those foods that are naturally lower in energy density (calories per gram) and also highly satisfying while limiting foods that are highest in fat and sugar and are less satisfying, so they lose weight without ever feeling hungry or deprived and without having to weigh, measure or count everything they eat.
· Our activity programme, Body Magic helps members to overcome any barriers around activity. Members choose when to start and they set the pace, finding activities they genuinely enjoy, until regular physical activity becomes an intrinsic part of their daily routine.
At the heart of everything we do lies our passion for treating every member with genuine care, empathy and respect.
We’re proud to work with the NHS, the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID), The Royal College of Midwives and others to help shape the future of weight management in the UK and Ireland.
For more information about Slimming World’s approach visit slimmingworld.co.uk or slimmingworld.ie
Follow Slimming World on Twitter at twitter.com/slimmingworld or become a Slimming World fan on Facebook at facebook.com/slimmingworld
For the Press Office visit our newsroom or email public.relations@slimmingworld.co.uk