This little piggy won’t be going to market on Thursday and it is all thanks to the generosity of the people of Ipswich.
Tonight a mystery reader pledged £1,000 to the Hog for our Hospice campaign, smashing our £5,000 appeal target and securing the Dr Trott and Nurse Honey-Cured sculpture for St Elizabeth Hospice.
The appeal was launched by both the Ipswich Star and EADT a fortnight ago in a bid to raise enough money to buy Dr Trott and Nurse Honey Cured for the hospice as a thank you for putting Ipswich on the map this summer.
We needed to raise the money before Thursday, when the 40 pigs from the trail will go under the hammer at Trinity Park.
There were a flurry of donations over the past few days and then tonight a mystery donor contacted the hospice to pledge £1,000, taking the fund past to £5,500 with more money still coming in.
With the target now reached, Dr Trott will be spared the auctioneer’s gavel and can now remain in the reception area of the Foxhall Road hospice, a lasting legacy of the successful Pigs Gone Wild trail.
Brad Jones, Ipswich Star editor, said: “A huge thank you to everyone for their generous donations to this campaign – we’ve smashed the target in just two weeks.
“The Pigs Gone Wild trail was such a huge success for the town, and it seemed only right that we did something to thank St Elizabeth Hospice for organising it.
“We’re overwhelmed with the response – from people of all ages - and it’s brilliant to think the hospice will now get to keep Dr Trott and Nurse Honey-cured as a legacy and reminder of the joy this trail brought to Ipswich over the summer.
“And, importantly, all the money pledged for the campaign will help fund its vital services.”
Norman Lloyd, Pigs Gone Wild project manager, said: “We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who donated to the Hog for our Hospice campaign and of course to the Ipswich Star for launching the appeal to secure Dr Trott and Nurse-Honey-Cured as a lasting legacy for the hospice.
“We are overwhelmed by the support we have had, not only to have smashed the target of £5,000 for the pig, but over the whole summer and throughout Pigs Gone Wild. We cannot thank everyone enough for taking the pigs into their hearts. From everyone at the hospice – staff, volunteers, and our patients and families – thank you!”
It is hoped the remaining 39 pigs will raise a combined £100,000 when they are sold to the highest bidders on Thursday, money which will be used by the hospice to further their work with those suffering from life-limiting illnesses and conditions.
School pupils do their bit
After working hard all week to earn their pocket money, a caring brother and sister selflessly offered it up to help bring a smile to the faces of patients at St Elizabeth Hospice.
They could have splurged on sweets and comics, but instead Phoebe and Oscar Hammond donated the money they had earned to our Hog for the Hospice campaign.
Grandfather John Parker, 66, said: “I showed the grandchildren the story in the paper about the pig and they both said they would like to donate their pocket money.
“They have done a lot of fundraising for other charities in the past so it wasn’t completely unexpected when they came up with the suggestion.”
In the past the siblings, from Kesgrave, have supported the East Anglian Air Ambulance but more recently they have focused their efforts on cancer charities.
“My wife was diagnosed with cancer last year and she has been going to the hospice for relaxation therapy,” said Mr Parker, of The lawns, Ipswich.
He added: “Their suggestion got me thinking and I decided that if they were willing to donate their pocket money then I would make the donation up to £100.”
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