TAILS have been set wagging once more as a popular hospice reinvents a much-loved fundraiser.
In the wake of the postponement of the annual Bark in the Park sponsored walk, St Teresa’s Hospice has launched Pawtraits, a virtual competition to find the region’s best dressed and cutest dogs.
For a minimum donation of £5, entrants can post a picture of their pooch on their Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts, using #StTsPawtraits and #IDonated and they will be entered for judging in the competition. Entrants should make the donation at www.justgiving.com/campaign/HugToStTs with #StTsPawtraits in the message box.
Bark in the Park takes place every year in South Park, Darlington, raising around £10,000 towards the annual £3m costs to provide free day, in-patient and community care for people living with life-limiting illnesses and their families in Darlington, South Durham and North Yorkshire.
Scheduled to be staged on April 19, it has had to be postponed and is pencilled in for September 6 because of the Covid-19 pandemic, one of a host of hospice events hit by the current crisis. All the St T’s charity shops have also had to close hitting further the hospice’s ability to raise funds.
As a result the hospice launched a special appeal, #hugtoStTeresas, complete with a Just Giving Page https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/HugToStTs and members of the public are also being encouraged to become official ‘Friends of the Hospice’.
Pawtraits is the latest virtual fundraising idea designed to help the hospice meet the acute shortfall in funding.
Hospice chief executive Jane Bradshaw said: “We appreciate how much dog-lovers enjoy Bark in the Park and more details will come soon about its new calendar date.
“In the meantime, while adhering to the strict stay at home rules, we thought a virtual competition would be a great way to raise some urgently needed funds and have a lot of fun.”
All entrants have to do is:
- Make a minimum donation of £5 at www.justgiving.com/campaign/HugToStTs with #StTsPawtraits in the message box.
- Post a photo of their dog on their Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts, using #StTsPawtraits and #IDonated.
- Check out the full guidelines at https://www.facebook.com/stteresashospice/.
Entries will be judged by a representative from sponsors Jollyes The Pet Superstore, Darlington. Jollyes are also donating a prize of a £15 gift voucher and a goody bag for the winner of each category.
Donations and entries must be made by midnight on Sunday, April 19 and the winners will be announced on Monday, April 20.