Tom’s story

“I am so wedded to the organisation; it is part of my persona.” – Tom Johnson

Tom Johnson says, “I initially became involved with the hospice in 1996 when one of the founding nurses of Iain Rennie Hospice at Home, Mary Robson gave a presentation at our local church. I was very moved by what Mary said, and the difference she and her team of nurses had made to the lives of people in our local community. There was a lot of emotion in the church that day.

“A few of us really wanted to help, so we approached Mary after the service and asked what we could do. Mary had already spoken to the Bishop of Buckingham, and he had suggested that we start a fundraising group to cover the costs of nursing, so we did just that.

“It was just Bring and Buy sales to start with. Then we got more confident and started organising larger events that generated more money. We did an Auction of Promises and received over 100 lots to sell – from a trailer load of logs to a box at the Albert Hall! We raised a great deal of money, which inspired us to keep going.

“Other events included twenty Burns night dinner dances, a barn dance, and black-tie balls. Over the years, we ran innumerable events which have probably generated in excess of one million pounds.

Helping to further develop the organisation

“It wasn’t long before I was asked to take on a different role for Iain Rennie Hospice at Home. I was managing a business at the time, and the Chairman of Trustees, Peter Gel, asked me to join the management board. He said Iain Rennie Hospice at Home needed my help to develop the business side of the organisation, because whilst they were brilliant at the nursing part, they lacked the structure they needed to function as an organisation. I saw it as a great opportunity to help the charity get to the next stage.

“A few years later, Peter Gel convinced me to become a Trustee. Each of the trustees had different aspect of the business to look after – mine was fundraising, but I also sat on the finance committee. I did this for seven years.

“One of the things I am most proud of is helping to set up the hospice lottery. At first the lottery was run by Iain Rennie Hospice at Home, The Hospice of St Francis and Florence Nightingale hospice. Latterly we added Thames Hospice and then Grove House. It was a huge success and still generates a considerable amount of money.

“I experienced firsthand how hospice care at home helps people, when my sister developed an inoperable brain tumour just like Iain Rennie and was nursed by Iain Rennie Hospice at Home. I was with her on the day she died. It sounds strange, but it was only then that I really realised what an incredible job the nursing team does. They looked after her so well. We would have been totally hopeless without them. We managed to keep my sister at home which made a profound difference to us all.

“When my sister had passed, the nurse called us up to see her, and she had dressed my sister and made her look so peaceful as if she was just taking a nap before going out to dinner. That’s my enduring memory of my sister. The nurses could have just called in the undertakers, but they go the extra mile, they really are angels. And that is why I am still raising funds for the hospice.

“I continue to fundraise today. I am so wedded to the organisation; it is part of my persona.

“My advice for anyone entering hospice care now, who isn’t clinical staff, would be to attend a nursing meeting and get to know nurses and understand what they do. It’s only then, that you truly realise how important your role is in supporting them to do their job.

“I have made so many friends along the way. When I retired as a Trustee, they gave me a collage of photos of me with all the people I have met along the way. It reminds me just how many people I knew through my work with the hospice, all of whom had enriched my life in some way.