Lorna’s Strictly Come Hospice story

Why did you choose Strictly Come Hospice to fundraise for Rennie Grove Peace?

“I’ve always loved dancing. And my husband, Mick, always loved to watch me dance. He couldn’t dance – he had two left feet! But I’ve always loved moving to music. So when I saw Strictly Come Hospice on the Rennie Grove Peace facebook page, I knew that was the thing for me! I thought it would be something I could do to raise money and would actually enjoy. I just wasn’t thinking about the part where I’d need to get on stage in front of 500+ people…”

How was the experience?  

“I signed up on my own and then pretty much forgot about it until I received an email from the fundraising team, inviting me to an information evening. At that stage I thought ‘oh no, what have I done?’! 

“The information evening fell on Mick’s birthday so my daughter came with me, for moral support. I was nervous going into a room full of people I didn’t know. But when I got there we were all in the same boat – all nervous and not sure what we were doing!  

“I was standing at the back next to somebody and we just clicked straight away.  

“When Scott and Lauren, the dance teachers, asked us to divide into groups based on which dance style we’d like to do, she and I joined the same group and decided then to be dance partners. She was called Michelle and we had such fun together, right from that first session.  

“We both decided to do a Charleston routine as we thought there would be scope to be a bit silly with it if we struggled to master the steps! “

How were the training sessions?

“It was so strange for me to attend the training sessions as they were held at my old school! It was so strange to go back after so many years, and a bit of a ‘full circle’ moment.   

“I’ve since moved away from that area so it was a 2-hour roundtrip each week for me to get to the training but we had so much fun, it was all worth it! 

“[The teachers] Scott and Lauren were amazing. They made the whole thing so fun and enjoyable. Every single dance was individually choreographed for the couple and they knew how to really play to the strengths of each individual, to get the best out of them.” 

Did you do any additional training? 

“Michelle and I wanted to do some extra sessions but work and family life made it a challenge. We did manage to do one additional session at a gym near Michelle’s house. There was a lift we really wanted to try but it was very challenging so in the main training sessions we had agreed to leave it. In our extra session we spent an hour perfecting just that one move!  

“We didn’t tell Scott that we had practiced so when we got to the next session he couldn’t believe it when we included the lift in our routine!” 

How was the finale? 

“On the day I felt really poorly but adrenaline got me through! We did our dress rehearsal in the afternoon and it went badly wrong. But you know what they say – a bad dress rehearsal makes for a good show! 

“So we put that out of our minds and got ready. As we waited in the wings for our turn, I could see my dad in the front row – right in the middle! 

“Then they called our names and we went on stage. The rest is a big blur! At the end of our routine I just remember thinking ‘We did it! And we nailed it!’. It was absolutely fantastic – so much fun. I just wanted to do it all over again! It was sad to think that would be the last time we would do our routine.”

How was the fundraising?  

“Raising money through this challenge was so important to me – as I wanted to give back to the charity for the care my husband, Mick, had received.  

“I wanted to set my personal target higher than the suggested sponsorship amount so I started with a target of £1,000. I shared it all over my social media accounts and at the golf club that Mick had been a member of, and it soon went way past £1,000! I couldn’t believe it. So I upped it to £2,000!  

“During the training I would upload videos every week or so from our training sessions to let people know how we were getting on and to remind people to donate. My final total was almost £2,500.  

“I’m so proud of myself for doing this. Not only did the challenge really push me out of my comfort zone but I was also proud to raise such a great amount for Rennie Grove Peace as the charity means a lot to me.” 

What would you say to anybody who is thinking of signing up for Strictly Come Hospice?