Light Up A Life: Join us at Carols by Candlelight this year and help support children like William and Lewis

This Saturday (December 16), Children’s Hospice South West is holding a very special Carols by Candlelight evening which is a free event for the local community, at the historic Bideford Pannier Market.

The donations given will help support local children in the South West with life-limiting conditions and give support to their family when they need it most.

The Copp family have been supported by the Little Bridge House children’s hospice in Fremington since 2009. Mum, Zoe and dad Gareth, were apprehensive at first of the idea of visiting a hospice with their children William ( aged 14) and Lewis (13), who have a condition called Congenital Hypomyelination Neuropathy. 

However, their fears soon subsided when they walked through the doors of Little Bridge House. Here Zoe and Gareth tell us more about the support that their family has received:

“The children absolutely loved it from the moment we arrived. At home our other children Chloe (now 23) and Oliver (now 16) would usually have to go to their grandparents while we went to hospital appointments with William and then later on with Lewis, but at Little Bridge House the children had our full attention and the attention of the care team.

“They also got to do lots of things that they wouldn’t necessarily normally get to do at home. They used to really look forward to coming and having that special attention from somebody else.

“When Chloe got older and became a teenager, she liked to be able to talk to the sibling team openly about her feelings and about her brothers’ condition.”

“For Lewis and William their favourite activity still is going into the Hydrotherapy pool as it’s something we can’t do at home and the sensory room is another favourite. The boys love music therapy too and when they were younger the messy play room was always somewhere they wanted to get creative in.”

“In 2017 we went through a difficult time with William and started to have those serious conversations with the care team about end of life care.

“It was very overwhelming as you know why you are going to a hospice with your child but there’s almost that invisible veil there, you are there with other families being supported but there is the other side of the hospice where children are there for end of life care.

“When we thought that we were in that situation we confronted our feelings and talked about it with the care team and it took that scariness away. It didn’t take away the feelings about it, but the fact that we had a bit more understanding and we could plan things for the future really helped.

“The care team allow us to ask about anything and everything that we want to know. They explain all the things you want to know the answers to but never want to ask the questions. You know you can ask them anything and it’s like talking to a friend rather than a specialist.”

Carols by Candlelight is an evening the whole family can enjoy, with a carol service led by Reverend Claire Rose-Casemore from St Marys church, plus Bideford Town Band will be accompanying the carols and there will be singing by St Mary’s Primary School Choir as well as Christmas readings.

Festive refreshments will be available after the service to enjoy with your family and friends.

Emma Perry, head of fundraising at Children’s Hospice South West said: “We are looking forward to sharing this very festive evening with everyone at the beautiful Bideford Pannier Market.

“Thank you to those who have already donated, it means so much, with your help we can continue to support families for many years to come.”

To make a donation to this year’s Light Up A Life appeal, which is kindly sponsored by James Electrics, please visit www.lual.co.uk or go to www.chsw.org.uk/light.