Hospice Awareness Week 

The theme for Hospice Awareness Week this year was sharing life stories: how hospice staff and volunteers are there to support people during the final chapter of their lives. Thanks to Hospice New Zealand, a series of videos was produced along with still imagery for all hospices to use on their social media platforms and websites. This year we attempted to raise awareness even more through closer collaboration for the first time ever with a number of other Auckland hospices. Between us, a radio ad and billboard advertising were produced inviting people to donate to their local hospice.

VIRTUAL Bucket Shake

Another first this year has been our innovative response to being unable to run our usual physical bucket shakes for Mercy Hospice. Faced with ongoing restrictions in the community, and an obvious concern to keep our volunteers safe, a decision was taken to move our bucket collections online. People registered and set up their own VIRTUAL bucket page, where they could tell the world about their motivation for supporting Mercy Hospice. Then, all they had to do was share a link to their page on their favourite social media channels. Over 20 pioneering bucket shakers signed up and raised over $6,500! Thank you so much for making an invaluable difference to patients and their families and going where few bucket shakers have gone before. VIRTUAL bucket shakes are here to stay, and we’ll be doing all we can to make the process fun and simple for everyone.

Listen to Kate Yeoman’s experience, one of our top virtual bucket shakers. Kate is also one of Mercy’s amazing registered nurses.

Q: What is your motivation to support Mercy Hospice?

A: I feel driven to support Mercy Hospice as I am on the frontline and see the difference that Mercy makes to people. Patients receive the care and expertise that they deserve and I feel privileged to be a part of the team delivering this care. The team that I work alongside, from the other nurses, doctors, health care assistants, volunteers and many others, all inspire me to be a better nurse and person. 

Q: What was it like for you to hear that we had to cancel our physical bucket collections?

A: Several years ago my sister and I took part in the bucket shake on Queen Street, which was a very humbling experience. Since then, I have always given a donation whenever I see people shaking buckets for charity as I appreciate how hard it is to stand on a street asking for donations. I also appreciate how important these are for charities as every little bit helps.

Q: How was your experience of shaking a ‘virtual bucket?

A: It was good fun filming some videos for the virtual bucket shake promotion and the experience of shaking a ‘virtual bucket’ was a lot easier than I expected. I’m not very IT savvy but it was very easy to create my virtual bucket page. I shared the link to donate on Facebook not really expecting much response and was blown away by the number of people who donated and how generous they were. A couple of my family even donated more than once.

Q: What tips would you give to others to help them fill their buckets next time?

A: I’d encourage everyone to create a virtual bucket next year and share it with their networks. It’s so easy to do and I’m sure you’ll be surprised at how many people will want to donate to support Mercy and the amazing job they do.

Leap for Life  

Earlier this year, three incredibly courageous women: Helen, Erica, and Olga stepped into a plane and climbed 13,000ft into the skies above Auckland. They were each strapped to a trained skydiver and together they each took the Leap for Life! And all it took was raising $800 by sharing the link to their individual fundraising pages. When asked what it meant to jump for Mercy, Helen said “…if patients and families can face their medical and emotional situation head-on, the very least I can do is be attached to someone jumping out of a plane. I felt privileged and humbled to do so.” Does the thrill of jumping from a plane at 13,000ft and living every moment for Mercy inspire you? Head over to https://leap-for-life.raisely.com/ and start fundraising your way to the skies!

Mufti for Mercy  

An enormous thank you to the children, families, and staff at St Therese School in Three Kings for running our first Mufti for Mercy and raising $111.00! What a fantastic result. Each classroom learned about what happens at Mercy Hospice and all the wonderful work that’s done here and in the community.