We’d like to thank Worcestershire-based accountancy firm Ormerod Rutter, who have raised an incredible £3,058 from a charity football match in memory of their colleague, Will Kwok.
Rachel Smith, Jayne Spiers, Neil Seager and Amy Cooper from the company recently visited our Selly Park site, where Will was cared for in our Inpatient Unit earlier in the year.
Neil shared: “Will was a very valued member of our OR family. He was an accountant in our Accounts Team, and a very valued member of that team. He was loved throughout the whole company.”
Rachel described Will as “one of the most respectful people” she’d ever met, adding: “He just would do anything for anybody, which is why we got such a good response to the fundraiser.”
Will had been diagnosed with cancer in December 2023, yet he still remained focused on his work. He was three exams away from receiving his ACCA accounting qualification, and stayed working until just after Christmas. He sadly died in February 2024, aged 32.
The football match was a fitting tribute to Will, who was passionate about the sport, being the only player with a 100% win rate in Ormerod Rutter’s weekly 11-a-side games. Over 180 people came to watch the game, held at Bromsgrove Sporting FC. Finding a suitable venue was important for the team’s fundraiser, and Bromsgrove Sporting were hugely helpful.
The wider team were keen to get involved, with Amy sharing: “Will was such a big part of the team… Everyone was just really happy to remember Will.
“It was important for us that we were doing it for Will’s memory. It was an added bonus for us to raise funds for somewhere that was so important for him. It’s not about us as a company but about him and his family and the hospice… That’s why people wanted to get involved.”
They made sure there was something for everyone at the event, with fun games for children and a buffet as well. The team have plans to make it an annual tradition – Rachel said how the experience “opened our eyes to how important raising money is for things like hospices who need it directly.” Ormerod Rutter offers matched funding for charities, which boosted the fantastic total raised.
The competition was strong on the day. Ormerod Rutter are a “big family” as a whole, which was especially true on the day, as the two partners at the practice who managed each team were brothers! The team all agreed Will would have loved the competitiveness.
Neil shared: “Had you asked Will what he’d liked to have done, that’s what he would have wanted, 100%.”
The experience and visit to the site helped the Ormerod Rutter team learn more about hospices, with Neil sharing how his perceptions had changed ‘massively’.
“They’re not miserable places, and actually it’s making how long patients have got left fun for them. It’s made me passionate about raising more, seeing the difference it makes.”