MANY people have possibly not heard of Forget Me Not Children’s Hospice.
But it made news for the wrong reasons when its new charity shop in Royton was broken into within a day of opening.
However, Rotary members heard about the positive steps being taken to open Grace’s Place Hospice in Bury to also serve Oldham and Rochdale.
Carla McBride from Forget Me Not spoke about the dedication of all the people involved and how children and parent-centred their care is.
More than 650 children in North Manchester are living with life-shortening conditions, but the majority aren’t getting any hospice support at all.
Some have been cared for by Forget Me Not Children’s Hospice at Huddersfield but the new facility in Bury means more children and families will be cared for and they won’t have to travel so far.
For further information go online: www.forgetmenotchild.co.uk/gracesplace
Members also heard from Patricia Bamford from the Oldham Stroke Support group and Laura Coleman of The Stroke Association.
They explained what constitutes a stroke, how to spot the signs and act F.A.S.T – Face, Arms, Speech, Time.
If you survive a stroke and are released from hospital, you and your family could be mostly on your own.
This where the Oldham Support Group to offer support. They give a chance for stroke suffers and their carers to take part in activities and share experiences.
Patricia also spoke about the impact her husband’s stroke had on her and her family and how this led her to the Oldham support group and her involvement in the group.
This is a self-funding group and does excellent work with limited funds. Find out more online: www.stroke.org.uk/finding-support/oldham-stroke-support-group
THE Rotary Club of Crompton and Royton carries out community work and also supports a range of local and international charities and projects.
They meet at the Puckersley Inn every Wednesday lunchtime from 12.30pm-2pm, and their meetings include a range of interesting speakers.
For more information about Rotary, visit their Facebook page or call Andy Czakow: 01706 840266.