A NEW appeal has been made to help Elland’s Overgate Hospice.

And with £6,000 a day being the target for the fundraising team, Overgate Hospice is not a place for the faint-hearted.

This year will see the running costs for the hospice in Elland increase to an amazing £2.8 million.

It receives just £600,000 in grant money from the NHS, which leaves it £2.3m to raise through fundraising – a colossal sum for any organisation.

Few families in the Huddersfield and Calderdale area will not have at some time required the services of this hospice so there is a reservoir of goodwill towards it.

Caroline Bone, part of the unit’s fundraising outfit, said: “We have between 50 to 60 full-time staff and we are supported by 400 registered volunteers.

“Finding £6,000 every day is a challenge, but the generosity of people is overwhelming.

“Over the last five years donations per individuals have decreased, as people just don’t have the same volume of personal income.

“Fundraising occurs in many shapes and forms these days – people leaving legacies for us, weddings at which donations are pledged to us and we try to make links with local businesses.

“We rely so much on the generosity and support of the local community – we couldn’t do it without you.

“By selecting us as your Charity of the Year for any support and fund-raising during 2013 will help ensure we can continue to provide this care to adults with life-limiting illness and their families in Calderdale.”

The fundraising team has come up with a variety of ideas by which people can support Overgate.

These include:

Dress Down Days

Recycling – old mobile phones, used stamps, foreign currency, old toner/printer cartridges

Donating to Overgate’s charity shops

Teams for events – check out the events page.

Raffles/tombolas

Signing up to the Overgate Lottery – £1 per week and a weekly top prize of £750 to be won.

Corporate Membership – donate a regular amount to the hospice and make links with other companies who support it.

Anyone who would like more information should contact the fundraising team by phoning 01422 387121 or email fundraising@overgatehospice.nhs.uk or see www.overgatehospice.nhs.uk on the internet.

The building, above, which houses Overgate Hospice was the home of Sylvia and Fred Graucob – founder of the Elland company Nu-Swift.

The couple moved to Jersey and Mrs Graucob donated the house to local doctors who wanted to set up a hospice.

The handover took place in 1979 and work started to create a hospice.

The first patients were admitted in 1981.

A Day Hospice was added in 2005.

£1.7m Archives Centre planned for Huddersfield University: Click here to read.