As the city once again welcomes the beautiful Umbrella Street installation to Prince Bishops Place, there’s a chance for all of us to be a part of it.
Sunset over the Umbrellas in Durham City Centre. pic.twitter.com/puBlWHA6wY
— Elemental photography Ltd (@elemental_north) May 6, 2023
Fundraising for St Cuthbert’s Hospice
By encouraging people to buy a personalised wooden tag, which will be hung from one of the umbrellas, the hope is that hundreds of pounds can be raised for a fantastic local charity.
So, following the success of the first Umbrella Street fundraiser in 2021 – which generated over £3,000 for the Team Solan Connor Fawcett Family Cancer Trust – the initiative has returned for 2023, this time in support of Durham-based St Cuthbert’s Hospice.
The Hospice does incredible work, providing free care and support not only to people with life-limiting illnesses or those approaching the end of life, but also to people who have been bereaved.
How you can get involved
Similar to the one that Anna is holding in the picture, your tag can be personalised with up to 30 characters of text – perhaps in memory of someone special, or to celebrate a family member or friend – so it’s a lovely opportunity to add your own unique mark to the Umbrella Street installation.
Ordering is easy – head to either Elvet & Bailey or the St Cuthbert’s Hospice pop-up shop in Prince Bishops Place where you can fill in the form with your dedication, and make the minimum donation of £5 or more. You can also make a Gift Aid declaration, to help your donation go even further.
Prince Bishops Place is generously covering the cost of all materials, while Anna and Mark from Elvet & Bailey – who also run etched wooden gift business Tiny Acorn – are kindly donating their time to the fundraiser. This means that whether you choose to donate £5, £10 or more, every single penny is going straight towards supporting the Hospice’s important work.
The intention is to attach tags to the umbrellas in batches throughout the summer, but we recommend not hanging around too long – there are only so many umbrellas, and last time the available number of tags ended up selling out!
As in 2021, the fundraising target is £1,500 – reflecting the fact there are over 300 umbrellas that tags can be hung from! – but it would be wonderful if, once again, the generous people of Durham can smash that target in support of such a worthy cause.
