Island Life Magazine Ltd February/March 2017 | Page 30

N
Interview
Charity that’s close to
the heart of Islanders
Islanders are known for their big-heartedness when it comes to charity
fund-raising - and one of the causes that has benefitted from this
generosity over the years is the Hampshire-based children’s hospice
Naomi House and its adjoining unit for young adults, Jacksplace.
While the name may be familiar, the work of the hospice is perhaps
not quite so well known here on the Island, so we asked the charity’s
Chief Executive Mark Smith to tell us more.
Imagine having to generate
over £7 million in revenue
each and every year just to
keep going, and you get an
idea of the sheer scale of
the job for Naomi House
and Jacksplace.
Picture: Chief Executive Mark Smith
30
www.visitilife.com
Happily last year, its tireless fund-
raisers chalked up £7.7 million,
securing another 12 months of
expert hospice care and home
support services for more than
340 youngsters suffering from
life-threatening and life-limiting
illnesses.
Best-known for its popular
flagship fund-raiser – the huge
annual 26-mile marathon walk
between Winchester and Salisbury
Cathedrals that attracts around
1,200 participants – the charity’s
big challenge is to keep coming
up with cash-generating ideas that
are fun and will capture the public
imagination.
Hence a new gladiator games-
type event that’s planned for this
year, and the already successful
and slightly crazy “Foam Fest”,
which involves runners covering
a 3-kilometre route while being
blasted with foam.
On a more sedate level, there are
charity music nights and grand
fabric sales – not to mention, of
course, the swathe of charity shops
right across the south, all run by
dedicated volunteers and which
generated a total of almost £2
million of last year’s total.
Mark Smith, who joined Naomi
House in 2010 as Head of Fund-
raising and was appointed Chief