Rachel McMillan’s latest blog – the Manchester Midnight Walk

Rachel McMillan, Chief Executive of St Ann’s, shares why she is excited that the Manchester Midnight Walk is back!

By Rachel McMillan on February 17, 2022

There’s been a lot of talk in the press and online recently about the valuable role charities have played during the pandemic. It’s amazing to read all about how people have come together in support of their local communities, even when they’ve been going through challenging times themselves.

At St Ann’s we couldn’t be more grateful to everyone from across Greater Manchester that has supported us, especially during the pandemic.

Our teams have been working really hard on the front line to ensure care could continue for people who need our specialist palliative and end of life care. We’ve had to be brave and bold, following advice and guidance to keep staff, volunteers, patients and visitors safe, whilst also taking decisions to evolve and adapt quickly to ensure our care could continue in a way that was accessible to as many people as possible.

But, we simply couldn’t have achieved what we have, or kept our doors open to provide that specialist care, without everyone who has donated and thought of us during this challenging time for all of us.

Our city is amazing. People are always ready and willing to think of others. It makes me so proud to be part of this community, and also proud that St Ann’s continues to play such an important part in serving the people of that same community too.

This year, we’re hoping we can say thank you to as many people from our local community as possible, as we’re excited that our flagship fundraising event the Manchester Midnight Walk is returning to the city centre where it belongs.

It’s the first time we’ll be able to get together to hit the city’s streets in the moonlight since 2019, and we’d love as many people to join us as possible.

The walk has raised more than £2million for our patients since it launched and the money raised really does make a huge difference to their lives.

We offer care both from our hospice sites, but also out in the community, wherever people need us. We’re also proud of some of our newer services which have enabled us to support people experiencing homelessness and those with learning disabilities; it’s so important to us that we try to reach out to everyone who needs end of life or palliative care, whatever community they are from.

The Manchester Midnight Walk is such an important flagship moment in our annual calendar, and raises much-needed funds so we can continue providing that specialist care to local people. It’s also a really fun night, with many people taking part to celebrate the life of someone special, whilst others simply take part to soak up the atmosphere and enjoy seeing our fabulous city in a new light.

We’d love as many people as possible to join us on the evening of Friday 20th May and celebrate the walk returning to the city centre – back where it belongs. Please visit www.mmwalk.org.uk now to sign up or for more information.

Thanks again, we couldn’t do what we do without your kind support.

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