Festive goodies including mince pies, chocolates, crackers and hundreds of Christmas cards have been donated by local Tesco stores to The Forever Friends Appeal for staff working at the RUH.
Staff from 11 Tesco stores, eight local convenience stores and three Tesco superstores from Keynsham, Midsomer Norton and Shepton Mallet, wanted to bring some Christmas cheer for those who will be working at the Royal United Hospital over the festive period.
Tracey Keating, Store Manager of the Tesco Express in Weston, Bath said: “We have around 100 stores writing Christmas cards to NHS heroes over the South West.
“We wanted to do something extra for our local NHS heroes to say thank you to them for sacrificing time with their families to look after our loved ones who are too unwell to be at home this Christmas.
“As well as donating the food and crackers, my colleagues have written over 350 Christmas cards for RUH staff, each with a message of our support and gratitude.
“It’s been great to do this from one key worker to another and we hope it will lift their spirits during their long shifts over the festive period.”
The Tesco staff also took part in The Forever Friends Appeal’s Keep It Cosy fundraising day by dressing up in Christmas jumpers to raise more funds for the hospital’s charity.
Patsy Gould, Corporate Officer, The Forever Friends Appeal said: “We would like to thank Tracey and her colleagues for their wonderful support. The items will be included in our staff Christmas hampers.
“As part of our RUH Christmas Appeal we have been offering businesses and individuals the opportunity to sponsor staff hampers which will be delivered to wards on 23 December.
“The hampers will be filled with lots of goodies, traditional Christmas treats and the Christmas cards from Tesco’s.
“At the RUH, we are like a family and our staff will go to great lengths to bring Christmas to their patients over the festive period. Therefore, we hope the hampers will remind our staff how cherished they are and how much we as a community we appreciate them for caring for the people we love.”
There is still time to sponsor a hamper for staff at the RUH. For more information about the hampers, or to make a donation to the charity’s RUH Christmas Appeal, visit www.foreverfriendsappeal.co.uk.