Each year, a team of dedicated volunteers come together for Paul Sartori Foundation to help raise vital funds for the Hospice at Home Service through their annual house-to-house collection.

The foundation was amazed this year by the outstanding result, having raised over £16,200 for the whole county for this worthy cause.

Volunteers and local businesses donated refreshments so that house-to-house collectors could come together at the Picton Centre on Wednesday, November 4, to celebrate their success.

A big thank you to all who took part and contributed.

"We are truly grateful to every volunteer that gave their own time to help with our 'Meet The Street' appeal and to every resident of Pembrokeshire that supported us and donated. It really does make a difference," said Joanne Horton, donations development officer.

"We are delighted with the result; the people of Pembrokeshire have truly supported us with this campaign. We find ourselves in a difficult economic climate however we still need to ensure that the needs of the terminally ill in our county are met. We have to ensure that we are able to provide qualified nurses and nursing assistants and essential specialised equipment that helps to make it possible for people to be at home at the end of their life if that is their wish.

"We have no guaranteed statutory funding for this and so rely so heavily on fund raising initiatives such as these. Without the dedication of the volunteers and support from the county, we simply couldn't do it!"

This year, the foundation hoped that they would be able to extend their collection to new areas in the county and were able to do this with the help of over 40 new volunteers. It was also hoped that they could raise awareness about Gift Aid and so increase their total amount raised.

Joanne continued: "We have so many areas within the county that we are still not able to cover in our house to house collection, which is why every volunteer that gives their time to help plays a crucial part in the success of our campaign.

"We hope that even more people we be able to join us next year to help particularly in Haverfordwest, Milford Haven and Neyland, Pembroke and Pembroke Dock. We are also very grateful to those that Gift Aided their donations helping us to increase the total further."

The house-to-house collection represents around three per cent of the total money needed by Paul Sartori Foundation to sustain its present level of service.

For one month every year, volunteers make a conscious effort to raise funds and awareness of the work in which the charity is engaged by going out into the community and knocking on doors and 'meeting the street'.

If anyone is interested in making a difference and becoming a collector for Paul Sartori Foundation, please contact 01437 763223.