Advent calendars spread cheer at hospice before Christmas

Christmas has well and truly arrived at a Penarth hospice – with a patient a day being treated to a gift from ward advent calendars. 

The festive treat was the idea of staff nurse Gwyneth Davies and healthcare assistant Aimee-Leigh Williams, who both work at the Marie Curie, Cardiff and the Vale Hospice, which provides round-the-clock expert care and support to those living with terminal illness and their families. 

Following the donation of one advent calendar from Josie Llewellyn, whose grandmother died at the hospice two years ago, nurse Lauren James said she and her mum would create a second advent calendar, to donate, so that both the ground floor and first floor wards could have one. 

The material advent calendars now have pride of place on both the ground floor and first floor wards and the hospice, and staff have donated small gifts to put in each day, such as small bottles of wine, chocolate coins and other items. 

They will then give a gift to a patient each day leading up to Christmas. 

Aimee-Leigh said:  “We’ll have a set time each day to draw the gift, and then we will present it to one of our patients, who has won via a raffle ticket system.

“It’s a way for us to bring the spirit of the festive season into the hospice, and help make the stay for the patients as cheerful as we can.

“We try all year around to make sure they are included in festivities, including making sure they have access to the rugby internationals when they are on, or including them in Halloween or St David’s Day celebrations.”

Josie said:  “I started doing it and when I told my mum, she came on board and really helped me put it together. 

“The Marie Curie hospice is a place close to our heart because her mum, my grandmother, died here two years ago.”

There were two winners on the first floor ward on December 1.  The first was Jean Baker, who was heading home that afternoon and received a box of biscuits.

The second ticket, which was picked out by two-and-a-half year old Dylan Willis, was won by his great grandmother Nora, who had hand cream from the calendar.

Jean said her husband was delighted with the prize.