MORE than £1,000 has been raised for a hospital charity through a village hall plant sale honesty box.
Kathleen Martin raised a record amount through her plant stall, outside Romaldkirk Reading Room this year, and the money has been handed over to the Friends of Richardson Hospital (FORH).
Mrs Martin, who has run the plant stall for the past 18 years, raised £1,060, smashing her previous record last year of £850, which was shared between the NHS and the village hall.
She said: “I am so thrilled, I can’t tell you.
“The response from everyone is fantastic.
“In lockdown, people couldn’t go to garden centres so I think that helped.”
Mrs Martin uses plants from her own garden for the stall in front of the reading room, which people can choose from and pay through an honesty box.
Residents also help by leaving behind plant pots for Mrs Martin to use for her charity fundraising efforts.
Pauline Harrison, of the friends group, was thrilled with the cash saying it would help to continue the vital support they provide to the hospital.
Support from the friends last year included providing cushions for benches used by those waiting after getting their Covid-19 jabs, headphones for patients’ TVs and radios, providing a microwave to heat patients’ food in the upstairs ward, digital monitors and toiletries.
Mrs Harrison said the group has also bought a lifting cushion for people who faint while receiving their Covid-19 injections.
She said Blenkiron Undertakers had also provided valuable support to the group.
Mrs Harrison added: “They were supplying toiletries through the pandemic and now they are doing a £50 cheque every two or three months.”
