Rowland sisters on target to raise £20,000 for Prospect Hospice

Swindon sisters Michaela and Kristy Rowland vowed to raise £20,000 by 2020 in memory of their mum, and are already at an incredible £18,000.

In 2018 alone, they completed Tough Mudder (a hard-core 10-12 mile obstacle race designed by British Special Forces), helped organise a golf day and a clothes swapping evening, and took part in Prospect Hospice’s Starlight Walk, bringing their total to £18,374.62.

“We’ve been fundraising since 2014 when Mum passed away at the hospice, and we want to do something different this year, and every year if we can,” explained Michaela. “The clothes swap, for example, was not something we’d normally do, but we really enjoyed it.”

Michaela and Kristy encouraged friends and family to come along for a £10 donation and offer up clothes they didn’t wear, to swap with others for something they wanted instead. Any unwanted clothes left at the end were also donated to Prospect Hospice. “There’s always one outfit you buy and then never wear, so it made sense to get everyone together and sell them on to someone else,” Michaela added. “We had wine and nibbles, I got a nice leather jacket out of it!”

Kristy raised £600 for the hospice doing Tough Mudder – surpassing her initial target of £400 – and admits it was a challenge. “Michaela is the one who normally does the running events – she did Tough Mudder with me, but I was running for Prospect Hospice,” she said. “I struggled a bit because I’m not a natural runner, but it was good fun and I’m glad I did it.”

Both of them stated firmly that their fundraising will ‘never stop’ – after all, their mum, Rebecca, was a huge fundraiser herself. “For us, awareness of what Prospect Hospice does is just as important as raising money for them,” said Kristy. “People are very giving and they know how much it means to us to keep supporting us. The hospice looked after mum, and our nan, so we will keep fundraising to make sure they aren’t forgotten, and to thank Prospect Hospice.”

As to what their mum would think of their fundraising achievements, both shared a smile. “I think she’d be proud of our organisational skills,” Michaela laughed. “She would have enjoyed the clothes swap evening more than a running event, having a glass of wine with the girls.”

This December, Michaela and Kristy will attend Light up a Life, as they have done every year since Rebecca died. “It has become a tradition for us, meeting up with the same group of people for the service,” said Kristy. “We enjoy the carol singing and the lanterns, and being able to remember Mum – we wouldn’t miss it for anything.”