Why Allyson is going on a Jolly Good Jaunt this October...

After last year’s success, this year’s Jolly Good Jaunt will be held on the morning of Sunday 29th October. It is a 7.5-mile sponsored walk from the Deer Park Country House Hotel through the breath-taking beauty of the autumnal East Devon countryside.

Allyson Fitzgerald and her daughter Emily took part in the Jolly Good Jaunt for the first time, last year. Her husband Mick had been cared for by Hospiscare before he passed away in 2013.

Both Allyson and Emily found the 2016 Jaunt to be a very positive experience: “We both enjoy walking and thought it would be a great way to explore some of our lovely countryside,” she recalls now. “When we arrived at the Deer Park, we were greeted by a Hospiscare volunteer who pointed us to the stalls and to the start of the walk.  There were lots of people already meeting up with friends and the atmosphere was very friendly. We had a thoroughly enjoyable time. We were directed by some lovely, helpful volunteers and it was great to be able to get out into the countryside, where we wouldn't have ventured on our own.”

Of course, as fun as the walk was, Allyson had serious motives for going: “My main reason for taking part is that I thought it was a really good way to give something back to Hospiscare, who had been so wonderful to my husband Mick and our family,” she explains. “The first time Mick met a Hospiscare nurse, who came to see us when he was still feeling pretty well and was very mobile, he commented on how positive the visit had been and how we were encouraged to get on with our lives. When Mick became poorly we had a wonderful nurse, Stella, who was so understanding, patient and very calming. She and Mick got on really well and it made such a difference when his illness progressed.”

Some things about Hospiscare surprised her: “Before Mick was taken ill, I had not realised that Hospiscare was a local charity,” she says, “and not a service that was provided by the NHS.  I was also surprised by the facilities and services that Hospiscare could offer.  Now that my family have received such a lot of help and support from Hospiscare I think it is a wonderful charity for such a worthwhile cause. I would just like to say a huge thank you to all those who helped us all through the most difficult of times.”

She adds: “I will definitely be signing up for the Jolly Good Jaunt this year and I am hoping that some of my work colleagues will join me.”

Do you want to join Allyson and take part in this year’s Jolly Good Jaunt? To learn more about the event and to sign up, visit www.jollygoodjaunt.co.uk or call the Fundraising Team on 01392 688020. Hospiscare is a local charity, providing free, high quality care and support to people with a progressive life-limiting illness, and those close to them in Exeter, Mid and East Devon.