Acorns Children’s Hospice is recognising the incredible contribution of Ross-on-Wye as it celebrates its 30th Anniversary.

2018 marks 30 years since Princess Diana officially opened the first Acorns Hospice in Selly Oak, Birmingham. Since 1988, Ross, and the wider Herefordshire community, have raised nearly £3 million towards helping the charity continue its vital care for local life limited and life threatened children and support for their families.

To kick off Acorns 30th anniversary celebrations, the charity held ‘30 days of thanking’ with Acorns staff personally calling and recording thank you video messages for supporters and volunteers across the region. A host of celebrities and well-known names, including UB40, Beverley Knight and Mark Gatiss also recorded their own messages of thanks and congratulations.

Acorns Chief Executive, Toby Porter, said: “This is an exciting and significant year for Acorns, but we wanted to begin by offering a big ‘thank you’ to our supporters and their incredible generosity.

“This includes the Ross-on-Wye community who have been instrumental in helping Acorns get to where we are today, helping us care for more children and support more families than ever before.”

Ross residents have also supported the charity’s shop which has been running in the town for over 19 years, raising vital funds.

Toby continued: “As well as the financial support, we’re overwhelmed by the many dedicated individuals from Ross-on-Wye who give up their time for us as volunteers, whether that’s in a shop or in a hospice. Without them, we simply wouldn’t be able to do so much valuable work.”

During 2018 the Acorns is challenging supporters to help celebrate its 30th anniversary by choosing at least one thing from a ‘30 things to do’ list.

To find out more, please visit the website www.acorns.org.uk/30years