Weston Hospicecare has today received a £1,000 donation from Woodspring Masonic Lodge in memory of a dear friend of the lodge’s former president.

It is a tradition for masons to raise money for charities nominated by their lodge president, and past president Richard Gape today visited Jackson Barstow House to present the hospice with a share of the proceeds from his year in office.

The money was raised through a host of activities held during the year by the lodge’s 60 members, ranging from raffles during meetings to events like fish and chip suppers.

Richard said he had chosen to support Weston Hospicecare because the charity had supported a dear family friend, Lindsay Wilkins, in his final days.

Lindsay and his wife Cheralyn – who accompanied Richard on his visit to the hospice – spent more than a month together at the hospice last year.

Cheralyn said: “The hospice let me move in with him here for five weeks – before that I didn’t realise all the work that went on here and what a wonderful job everyone does.”

The picture shows Richard presenting the cheque to Weston Hospicecare’s inpatient unit sister Clare State, watched by Cheralyn Wilkins (right) and community fundraiser Rachel Mansfield.