Weston’s League of Friends celebrates 60 years of giving

For the past 60 years, the League of Friends has provided Weston General Hospital with new equipment to ensure it remains at the forefront of patient care for people in the town. The League of Friends has donated more than £5 million to the town’s hospitals since it was founded in 1956.

At today’s tea party event the League of Friends enjoyed a nostalgia board showing newspaper cuttings from down the years and guests enjoyed a celebration tea and cake, as well as thank-you speeches from Weston Area Health NHS Trust chairman, Graeme Paine.

June Stephen, Chairman of League of Friends, said:  “I’m delighted that so many of our members are here today to celebrate the League of Friends 60^th Anniversary.

“When we were established six decades ago there were only a few local charities in Weston so our group had an important role to play in the community, and, we still do to this day. The League continues to go from strength to strength and we’re excited about our future.”

Trust chairman Grahame Paine, said: “We are very proud to join in the 60th Diamond anniversary celebrations with our marvellous League of Friends.

“We have a tremendous partnership, the League of Friends play a crucial role in raising donations to support our hospital.  We value their hard work over the last 60 years and we thank them very much.”

The event also saw fundraising in the form of a member’s raffle to raise donations for the ‘Diamond Jubilee Scanner Appeal’ – the League’s most recent initiative which has been launched to celebrate the group’s 60th anniversary.

June adds: “Throughout our history the League of Friends has always been committed to raising funds to support Weston General Hospital, whether that’s to buy medical equipment or to upgrade facilities.

“In our diamond year, we are launching an ambitious campaign to raise up to £400,000 for new digital scanning equipment at Weston General Hospital.

“The appeal is for the people of Weston and the surrounding areas. New digital scanning equipment will mean people can access treatment locally, rather than needing to travel to Bristol or Taunton. That’s hugely beneficial, especially for older people who might find travelling to be more difficult.”

Should you wish to support the appeal, please enclose a donation marked ‘scanner appeal’ and send to League of Friends at Weston General Hospital.

You can also donate directly, via the League of Friends shop which is located inside the hospital, or by texting SCAN16 and the amount to 70070.

Alternatively, donate by visiting the JustGiving page: https://campaign.justgiving.com/charity/westonhospital/scannerappeal.