When Marie Curie first joined the Charity Car scheme a few years ago, a couple of us headed out to collect, and not only raised some funds for the charity, but felt like we got to know what it really means to be part of this special organisation. People see you with a tray of daffodils and instinctively share what Marie Curie has meant to them. It’s a moving experience, and while some of the stories are sad, the comfort Marie Curie has obviously given them makes you quickly understand how important the funds are that you are trying to generate.
We hope by now you know what Marie Curie does, but in short, the charity provides much-needed expert care to people with terminal illnesses, as well as supporting their families, whether that’s through their support line, their famous nurses providing care at home, or their community hospices. Marie Curie is there when it matters most.
The Charity Car team obviously wants to give Marie Curie the funds from as many old car donations as you can generously give, but while that’s our main aim, we know that the Great Daffodil Appeal is a significant fundraiser for the charity and we wanted to help out. Our colleague Liz, based in the Midlands, signed up online and just a week later was meeting with her fellow ‘collectees’ to start her two hour shift.
Here’s what she had to say:
“Marie Curie’s strap-line for this campaign is ‘Behind every daffodil, there’s a story’ and they couldn’t have described it better. After a friendly chat with my fellow collector, being given our collection tin and box of beautiful daffodil pins, we picked our prime spot in the entrance to a Morrison’s supermarket and soon remembered why collecting is such a worthwhile experience.
While many people just want to give their contribution quietly, some people share why they’ve given whatever they can, and invariably it’s a story where a Marie Curie nurse has given people the strength and comfort to deal with a situation that seemed impossible. From a lovely couple who described their granddaughter facing a terminal illness at just 14, to a busy lady with armfuls of flowers on the way to visit her terminally ill father to remember her mother who had passed several years before.
Of course, we had plenty of laughs with people digging out their coins to give us, the excitement of folding money being donated and the elderly couples who didn’t want either of us to feel left out, so split their donation in two to make sure we both received some of their cash. It’s amazing how quickly a couple of hours can go when you are doing something so worthwhile and meeting great people along the way.
My only regret, if you can call it that, is that I’d promised my Charity Car colleagues an up-to-date photo of me fashioning the synonymous giant yellow hat… Sorry team!
After handing in our collectors accessories and a ‘hope to see you next time, goodbye’ we headed off home. I was delighted to get my fundraising update text from Marie Curie the next day (that’s what you call efficient!). My collection tin alone had brought in £76.04! That will fund over 3 hours of care from a Marie Curie nurse… Wearing a yellow tabard never felt so good!”
Whatever the story is behind your daffodil, or donation of an old car of course, we’re delighted you are showing your support for Marie Curie. The funds raised help the charity provide vital care and support to terminally ill people and their families.
There is more information about this important charity on their Charity Car donation page.
