The full details for Julia’s House 2024 winter ball have been announced as fundraisers hope to keep the hospice charity running.
The annual event, hosted by Calne Lions Club, is a major part of Julia’s House's calendar and allows the charity to continue offering vital care for children with illnesses in Wiltshire.
This year’s black-tie event will be held on Saturday, February 17, 2024, at DoubleTree by Hilton in Swindon, and tickets will remain on sale until January 15.
The ball, which anyone is welcome to attend, will consist of a three-course meal, a raffle and an auction, but most importantly the full cost of entry and all proceeds will go to Julia’s House.
The 2018 ball raised a record sum of more than £30,000, and attendees and fundraising totals have only continued to grow since then.
“We first got involved when Peter Wragg, the chairman of Julia’s House, came to give a talk to Calne Lions about the charity,” said Lions Club member Rachel Viles.
“After listening to all the work they do and knowing from having disabled children how hospices have helped many of my children's friends and families, I put forward to the Club that we hold a ball to raise funds for Julias House.”
“As only about 4 per cent of their operating costs are provided by the Government, Julia’s House relies on the generosity of the general public,” added a spokesperson for Calne Lions.
“The remaining 96 per cent of their £2.2 million costs is raised through fundraising, public donations and legacies. That’s why Calne Lions are committed to supporting their work with our Ball.”
Julia’s House is a children’s hospice charity in Wiltshire and Dorset which first opened in 2003.
It was named after Julia Perks, a paediatric nurse whose dream was to develop a support network for families struggling to care for a child with a life-limiting or life-threatening condition without any help or respite.
Although Julia’s House is named after Julia, it was her friend Mike Wise who founded the charity after she died.
The two hospices, based in Corfe Mullen in Dorset and Devizes in Wiltshire, together need to raise millions of pounds annually to provide their services across the two counties.
Tickets for Julia’s House ball can be purchased on the Calne Lions website.
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