Following the merger between Birmingham St Mary’s and John Taylor Hospice on Monday, we wanted to share some positive stories and catch up with our staff members as they begin their new roles as part of The Hospice Charity Partnership – and perhaps introduce you to some new members of the team.
A familiar face for staff, volunteers and supporters at John Taylor Hospice, Kerry McGrath began her fundraising career at JTH back in 2014.
Today we catch up with Kerry as she embarks on a new income generation journey – taking up the newly-created position of Individual Giving Fundraiser for Birmingham St Mary’s and John Taylor Hospices.
Please tell us more about your new role with The Hospice Charity Partnership.
“My job as Individual Giving Fundraiser, which is a new role for The Hospice Charity Partnership. Both hospices have previously had colleagues concentrating on Individual Giving within their wider roles, but now I’ll be able to solely concentrate on growing income through regular giving, legacies and direct mail campaigns, which I’m really excited about. This will give me an opportunity to build relationships with families who are passionate about hospice care, and the merging of our two hospices means this income stream will now have huge potential to grow as we will be reaching individuals across the city.
Why is individual giving important to our hospices, and future patients and families?
“Individual Giving is an extremely important form of income for our charity as it can provide financial security for the future, helping to ensure even more people can continue to receive personalised and specialist support in our hospices or at home. If you have any questions at all, I’d be more than happy to help, so please do get in touch.
What projects are you currently working on?
“We are currently working on future plans and campaigns but in the short term I hope to grow our regular giving across both hospices as well as concentrating on reorganising our 110 Celebration Dinner for supporters where they can learn more about the benefits of the two hospices coming together as well as an opportunity to hear about the difference legacy giving can make to the hospices.
What is your favourite thing about working at Birmingham St Mary’s and John Taylor Hospice?
“I remember the first family member of a patient I met like it was yesterday (although it was seven years ago!). Despite how sad she was to have lost her mother, she was so grateful for the care and support she had received from everyone – from clinical staff, our Catering Team, receptionists and Housekeeping Team – and I’ve experienced the same gratitude every day since. To see and hear about the comfort that hospice teams are able to provide to families during the hardest time of their lives makes me so proud. It also motivates me to fundraise as hard as I can to ensure everyone across the city can receive the same incredible care we’ve been providing for so many years.”