Two hospices have been chosen to receive grants totaling £3,088 from the Freemasons.
The financial boost from the Province of Yorkshire West Riding come through the Masonic Charitable Foundation (MCF), and whilst Harrogate’s Saint Michael’s Hospice receives £1,290, Martin House Children’s Hospice, in Boston Spa, will benefit to the tune of £1,798.
In total 15 Yorkshire hospices have received donations totaling £21,920 from this latest round of grant giving, and these are just two of 237 grants to hospices around the country from the Freemasons.
In total £600,000 will be donated to hospices all over England and Wales this year. This includes £300,000 which will be distributed to each hospice that receives less than 60 per cent funding from the NHS.
Those to benefit are:
- Barnsley Hospice £890
- Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice £1,732
- Forget Me Not Children’s Hospice £1,173
- Kirkwood Hospice £1,584
- Manorlands Hospice Sue Ryder Care £1,535
- Marie Curie Centre Bradford £1,184
- Martin House Children’s Hospice £1,798
- Overgate Hospice £988
- Prince of Wales Hospice £1,086
- Rotherham Hospice £1,486
- Saint Michael’s Hospice £1,290
- St Gemma’s Hospice £2,528
- St Luke’s – The Sheffield Hospice £1,780
- Wakefield Hospice £1,184
- Wheatfields Hospice – Sue Ryder £1,682
A further £300,000 will be provided to individual hospices across England and Wales via Hospice UK, the national charity for hospice care. The MCF is partnering with Hospice UK to develop and extend bereavement support services in hospices.
Contributions from Freemasons to hospices have exceeded £13m in England and Wales since 1984 and are continuing to increase at a rate of £600,000 a year.
David Pratt, the Provincial Grand Master of Province of Yorkshire West Riding, said:
I’m very pleased we’ve been able to assist both Saint Michael’s Hospice and Martin House Hospice.
They do an outstanding job helping people with terminal or life limiting conditions, as well as supporting their families through very difficult times.
The Masonic Charitable Foundation (MCF) is one of the largest grant-making charities in the country. Funded entirely through the generosity of Freemasons and their families, the MCF awards millions of pounds each year to local and national charities that help vulnerable people, advance medical research and provide opportunities for young people. The MCF also helps to fund vital services such as hospices and air ambulances and regularly contributes to worldwide appeals for disaster relief. In total, MCF support helps to improve the lives of thousands of people every year in England, Wales and internationally. As well as providing grants to charities, the MCF supports Masonic families with a financial, health or family need. Visit www.mcf.org.uk
