Dozens of Marie Curie volunteers in Wales form shape of daffodil petal to mark Great Daffodil Appeal

Dozens of volunteers for the UK's leading end of life charity have come together to create the shape of daffodil petals to mark its biggest annual fundraising appeal.

Fundraisers from across Wales feature in the Marie Curie image, as part of its Great Daffodil Appeal which runs through February and March in Wales.

Among those featured in the image are two volunteers whose loved ones have received support from Marie Curie in their final days, and another who continues to support the charity through her own terminal diagnosis.

Mair Jones, a former nurse from Seven Sisters, will this year be hosting and joining no fewer than six collections across the Swansea Bay area.

The dedicated volunteer saw firsthand the care Marie Curie Nurses provide last year, when her late husband received end of life support from the charity.

Mair said she began volunteering in 2006 because she felt low and wanted to give something back.

That sentiment is similar for Anne Holland, from Mold, whose late husband also had Marie Curie Nurses support him. 

The charity needs volunteers across Wales to give just two hours of their time to hand out its iconic daffodil pins in return for donations. People can also join a Go Yellow day on 21 March, fundraising by wearing or baking something yellow at work or school – or in any way that suits them.

Today one in four people don't get the end of life care they need, and Marie Curie's Great Daffodil Appeal encourages people to donate and wear a daffodil pin to help the charity continue to support people with any illness they're likely to die from on one of its nine hospices or in people's homes.

"My mother loves daffodils and I love the colour yellow and so I thought I'd try Marie Curie," said Mair.

"It got me out of my shell a little bit. I only did a few hours, but I was totally committed."

Mair's late husband Phill, who had multiple conditions including liver cirrhosis, cancer of the oesophagus and stomach and kidney failure as well as COPD and Alzheimer's, received palliative care sporadically for eight years and died on 6 April 2023.

Talking about the care he received from Marie Curie Nurses at home, she said: "The nurses were outstanding, they are a little bit special and I can spot them from a group. It was all meant to be, as if someone had planned it, sat down and said on this day this is going to happen, tomorrow this is going to happen and so on.

"She just sat there beside my husband. She insisted I went to bed, because she could see I was absolutely on my knees. I did sleep for two hours. I got up and had a lovely shower. I had the time to do that knowing that she was there.

The day after her husband's death, Mair collected for Marie Curie.

"It's a life saver to me at the moment," she said.

"I feel privileged that people share with us their experiences of loved ones passing. How grateful they are – like myself, I've been in that position – for the Marie Curie nurses and healthcare assistants.

"It's wonderful, the friendships one makes."

Anne Holland is a member of the Flintshire Fundraising Group. When her late husband John was diagnosed with an aggressive form of bowel cancer, he had a number of hospital stays and died just weeks after being informed it was terminal.

 

"Marie Curie Nurses allowed my husband to come out of hospital and spend his final nine days at home," says Ann, of Mold, who explains John had support from the charity's Urgent Hospice Care at Home team – previously known as Rapid Response, who provide emergency support overnight.

"It meant we could care for him with confidence at home and know that we had district nurses during the day and Marie Curie Nurses at night whenever John needed extra support.

"I started volunteering so I could give back for what they did for us."

Anne said her first collection was very emotional, but she is one of a number of now dedicated volunteers in the group, including Barbara Letman, 74, who still volunteers while living with a terminal diagnosis of Leukaemia.

She is currently unable to collect in supermarkets due to her risk of infection, but continues to host collections by giving items to signed-up volunteers, takes daffodil boxes to shops around Flintshire and supports the charity by counting and banking the funds raised.

"I wanted to give back after a former cancer diagnosis, and I met Peter from the group when he came to collect a tin after I did a supermarket collection," said Barbara, of Hawarden.

"He invited me to join the committee, and I'm glad I did, I feel involved. It's helped me mentally as well, because you get chatting and everyone has a story about Marie Curie.

"I was collecting once at Broughton Park, and this little tot – only about 4 or 5 – came up to me with a pound and her mum was standing a little bit away. I asked if it was her pocket money and she said yes, and I told her I couldn't take her pocket money.

"Her mum nodded and I said ok and the little girl said to me 'it's for me Nanna'. I had to turn to compose myself."

All three women say they would encourage anyone to sign up to a collection in their local supermarket, Superdrug or high street.

If you can support the appeal, visit www.mariecurie.org.uk/daffodil to find out how you can join a collection or to read about Go Yellow day on 21 March.