A team of midwives from Blackburn Birth Centre took part in a charity ‘bag pack’ on Sunday 5 May, International Day of the Midwife.
The midwives, led by Associate Lead Midwife Karen Mitchell, were raising money for East Lancashire Hospital’s Trust Charity, ELHT&Me, by assisting Morrison’s customers to pack their shopping in return for donations. The funds raised will be spent, through ELHT&Me, on new furniture for the birth rooms at Blackburn Birth Centre.
“The day was very successful, with lots of interest and generous donations from Morrisons’ customers”, Karen said. A total of £507.55 was raised, and the midwives hope to make the fundraiser a quarterly event.
International Day of the Midwife takes place annually, and this years’ theme was “Midwives: Defenders of Women’s Rights”. Hosted by the International Confederation of Midwives, the aim is to join people together to “celebrate and advocate for the many ways that midwives defend, protect and stand up for the rights of women, girls and midwives around the world.”
Denise Gee, Fundraising Manager for ELHT&Me, said “we are delighted that the midwives chose to give up their time to raise money for the hospitals’ charity. All funds raised for ELHT&Me are spent in the department or ward they are intended for, and are used to improve patient environment and experience.
“On behalf of the charity, I would like to congratulate the midwives on their achievement, and thank the generous Morrison’s customers for their donations – every penny counts!
“If a ward, department or other group is interested in raising money for ELHT&Me, through a bag pack or another activity, please get in touch with Emma, our Community Fundraiser, by emailing fundraising@elht.nhs.uk.”
To find out more about East Lancashire Hospitals Trust’s charity, ELHT&Me, visit www.elht.nhs.uk/elht-and-me-charity.