The ladies’ section of a Llanelli golf club has raised almost £1000 for the UK’s leading end of life charity, after the captain’s father was cared for by their nurses.
Rhiannon Roberts, Ladies’ Captain at Machynys Golf Club, was supported by members to host the event in September in aid of Marie Curie, with visitors across South Wales heading to the club to play and attend the coffee morning, which included a raffle and raised £920.
Rhiannon, who said support for the event was “phenomenal”, chose the charity after her father, Bob Roberts, received support from Marie Curie Nurse Charlotte when he was living at home with dementia. Charlotte also provided emotional support to her mum, Anne.
“As well providing ladies with an opportunity to play our fabulous course it also provided us with an opportunity to raise money for the nurses that had supported dad and others like him during his time at home with dementia, and also my mum,” said Rhiannon.
“When somebody with dementia lives at home, the pressure on the partner, husband or wife is huge and naturally that had been massive with mum.
“Despite having a team of people who would come to see how things were, the one who had the greatest impact on my mum was Charlotte, who even when dad went into hospital in the middle of September, Charlotte would still check in with mum and ask her “how are you doing”, because even though somebody has moved into a hospital, it doesn’t automatically mean that everything is sorted.”
Talking about the support the family received, which included a social worker and dementia support groups in the Amman Valley, Rhiannon said: “It is so important that families living with dementia get as much support as possible – especially when the sufferer is living at home.
“Dad’s dementia was very, very severe, and whilst we were looking for a care home dad had several episodes of falling. The ambulance service was amazing, but continuing to live like this was untenable, and after another fall, he was admitted to Glangwili Hospital.”
After going into hospital in September 2019, on New Year’s Eve Bob was admitted to a care home, where he sadly died on April 22, 2020.
Prior to the pandemic, there were visiting restrictions due to Norovirus and in March, the home then had Coronavirus cases. The family was initially kept in communication via What’s App.
“That stopped once Covid hit the care home, so we weren’t able to speak to dad, we weren’t able to communicate with him and that was difficult,” said Rhiannon, who then had a call on April 21 saying her father had gone downhill.
“We had a last opportunity to communicate with him and the next morning he’d passed away. Dad had gone to the point where he was not walking, he was bed and room bound. The deterioration was rapid.
“Despite having an acute feeling of loss, dad is now at peace. He had little quality of life, and especially as circumstances have it right now, we still wouldn’t be able to go and visit and spend time with him.”
Sara Bass, Fundraising Manager for Marie Curie in Wales, said: “We are so grateful for support from people like Rhiannon, who have experience of Marie Curie care and of course sports organisations like the ladies at Machynys who come together to fundraise funds which are so vital to ensuring that care continues – especially during such a difficult year for everyone.”
- Marie Curie is here for you this Christmas. If you need end of life care or bereavement support, call the charity’s Information and Support line on 0800 090 2309 or visit https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/help/support/marie-curie-support-line/christmas-story
