Twilight Wander

Friday saw the return of The Twilight Willow Wood Wander with some 150 pink-clad wanderers coming together at Astley Sports Village for the annual event.

The atmosphere was buoyant and, as Willow Wood put it, it was as much a great night out as it was a fundraiser for the hospice.

The Sports Village was filled with music, refreshments, face painters, stalls and merchandise.

Once the Midnight Wander, the sponsored 10K walk now starts at 9pm to enable families and children to take part. On arrival back at the centre, walkers were presented with a specially designed medal along with a very welcome hot breakfast bap.

Pink t-shirts were included in the registration fee and plenty of pink accessories decorated the walkers as they paraded through the streets of Tameside - from feather boas to tutus.

Mark Llewellin, vice-chair of the board of trustees and acting head of fundraising, said the Wander has changed over the years, and it was wonderful that the community event was back again.

“We’re more family friendly and we’ve also got competitions for things like the best dressed dogs, we’ve got the Ghostbusters car and we’ve added to the event to make it more ‘carnival,’” he said.

He emphasised how important volunteers are for the hospice and appealed for more people to join, stating there are many different roles.

Mark himself was a volunteer marshal on the Wander route last year and described it as ‘great fun’, saying: “It was good to chat to our supporters, to hear stories of our care from relatives - and meet some of our day patients too - and to give a bit of encouragement if the walkers were flagging.”

Plenty more information can be found on the website about the volunteering options that are available to any members of the public.

Lisa Knowles and her family were supporting the walk, with Willow Wood having a special place in their hearts.

“Willow Wood was there for us when we needed them more than anything,” said Lisa, who lost her mum to cancer five years ago.

“When we couldn’t care for her at home any longer, she was referred to Willow Wood Hospice and luckily there was a bed for her.

“She just received the best care; she was looked after, she was peaceful, we could visit her whenever we wanted and the kids were there late at night. It was just what we needed it to be.”

Lisa later became a volunteer for the hospice, joining a small army of more than 500 volunteers.

“They are all amazing, we couldn’t keep the hospice open without them,” said Lisa.

“About a year down the line, a position came up so I’ve worked there three years,” added Lisa.

Champaben Mistry, who attended with the Dipak Dristi Social Group, said being able to do the walk was ‘a privilege’.

She explained that one of her volunteers has been working with the hospice for 20 years and there is an ‘excellent’ relationship between her own group and Willow Wood (who she said have helped her and the members of her group immensely).

Staff at The Rising Moon in Matley operated as a water station for participants, giving out bottles of water to the Wanderers as they passed by. The venue also organised its own supportive Willow Wood fundraising event on the night with entertainment to boost funds further, with even a Ghostbusters car.