'When my dad died fundraising was my way of coping'

Claire McDowell is fundraising and front of house lead at Coventry's Myton Hospice

When Claire McDowell lost her beloved father to a sudden and aggressive cancer, she found solace through helping others.

Fundraising, she says, was her way of getting through the loss of her dad Fred.

Since then, Ms McDowell has raised £25,000 for Marie Curie and the Myton Hospice, where he was looked after in 1998.

It led on to a 20-year career helping to bring in millions of pounds to support families going through the same thing.

When her dad died Ms McDowell, from Coventry, was working several jobs including as a hairdresser and a receptionist.

But her knack for fundraising through things like social events and fairs was soon recognised, and she was offered a job at Myton.

She has been instrumental in the opening of the charity's Coventry hospice, now serving as its fundraising and front of house lead.

The establishment has looked after thousands of people at the end of their lives and will celebrate its 15th birthday next month.

The Coventry hospice is one of three run by Myton and will soon celebrate 15 years

"They were so amazing that I started fundraising before I came to work for Myton," Ms McDowell explained.

"I had a great dad. He put us first as children and it was a shock with the illness he had."

Now the mother-of-two is helping other families facing the devastating loss of a loved one.

"It's a privilege to be there for somebody," she said. "I love my job. You can hear some really sad stories and it can be very difficult.

"But I have seen it first hand. I have been there as a relative and I have been out here. The compassion and kindness is lovely."

Claire McDowell with her dad Fred, who she described as someone who always put his children first

Ms McDowell praises the volunteers, nurses and the entire team at the Coventry hospice, where flowers and chocolates are delivered for staff on an almost daily basis.

The highs of the job are great - with beach days, alpaca visits and Christmas reindeers - but workers also face challenging conditions.

More people currently need a hospice bed than ever before, Ms McDowell said, but three out of five people on the Myton waiting list will die before they can access one.

"People hear about the wonderful care Myton give and they choose to be over here rather than being at home," she added.

The fundraising doesn't stop for Claire, who has helped the hospice raise millions of pounds since her dad died, in 1998

It means the fundraising doesn't stop.

Only 20% of the charity's money comes from the NHS, with staff having to find £11 million of the £14.3 million it costs to provide services free of charge.

To put that figure into context, Ms McDowell said staff had to raise just £1.7m when she first started the job - and now with more centres, demand and inflation mean the costs keep climbing.

Myton run three hospices across Warwickshire

But she insists the hard work is worth it, with the money used to give families precious memories.

"We have done several weddings, including some for patients that only have a week or two left," Ms McDowell continued.

"In some cases they have to be organised in just days, which means it is a case of having all hands on deck to get things sorted.

"We like to dress it up like a wedding venue and make it really nice for the patients and their family."

Demand is higher than it has ever been

Myton has three hospices in total, in Coventry, Rugby and Warwick. They care for people aged 18-plus with a range of life-limiting illnesses.

"It's to give people memories," Ms McDowell said. "When you have lost someone you like to have the memories.

"We might be having a tough day but we're making a difference to families' lives."

A Christmas fair will take place on 7 December to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the Coventry hospice.

It hopes to contribute to a £240,000 fundraising drive to fund the recruitment, training and salary for five registered nurses for a year.