PET SHED TO PROVIDE COMFORT, THANKS TO A LITTLE HELP FROM PETER!

A hardworking Dad has volunteered more than 140 hours of labour to complete a DIY SOS-style makeover on the Pet Shed at Trinity Holistic Centre.

Peter Boyle, whose daughter Emily works in the centre on the James Cook Hospital site, also secured the donation of wood and other items worth about £1,300 needed to complete the work from Wickes, after stumbling across a small section of their website which explained the firm donated to charitable causes.

Emily volunteered her Dad for the work, after he completed a similar – but much smaller - job on the family’s summer house.

And he went above and beyond, liaising with Alison McDowall at Wickes to get the materials donated before starting work on the Pet Shed in the middle of winter on January 25!

He said: “The shed wasn’t getting used as much as it could have been because it was too cold, so Emily asked if I would get involved in making it more cosy.

“After finding out about the Wickes Community Fund and contacting them with the details, I spent quite a few days compiling a list of everything we needed and I thought they might say, ‘we will help you with a proportion of the cost’.

“They replied saying they would do it all once they had the official charity number and details – I was amazed!”

Another volunteer helped out with a van to transport the materials to the Holistic Centre – and several weeks of work for Peter began!

It wasn’t completed by the part-time tutor until March 16, after he spent every Thursday and Friday working about 18 hours on the shed.

Peter said: “I tried to get most of the cutting done before it got dark. I started with the insulation on all the walls and the ceilings and then used a nail punch to add the planks of wood.

“The wood is quite delicate, so it was a bit fiddly – and moving up onto the ceiling was a bit of an ordeal as it’s got an apex roof.”

However, despite Peter’s aching arms, the painstaking lining work to the internal walls and roof means it is now warm enough all year round for people in hospital to receive a visit from their pets.

It’s an extremely precious and valuable time for many patients and one of many much-valued services the Holistic Centre provides to cancer patients and those with

Trinity Holistic Centre

Shed work in progress other long-term conditions.

Peter said: “It’s so nice to know how much people will benefit from it – it’s functional and we’ve just tried to make it as nice as possible.

“It will lift people’s spirits when medicines and people won’t, as their pets are important to them – you don’t have to say anything to your pet, they are just a source of comfort.”

The shed has already had the seal of approval from the Boyle family’s Yorkshire Terrier George – named by Emily after former Boro player George Friend – who had the honour of being the first pet to try the new shed out.

Peter’s wife Kathryn, who works at James Cook Hospital is also incredibly proud of him!

The Trinity Holistic Centre at both the James Cook Hospital and The Friarage Hospital relies solely on charity fundraising to provide its vital work supporting patients with cancer and other long term conditions, with a range of services the NHS does not fund.

These include complementary therapies like aromatherapy and auricular acupuncture which can help alleviate some of the side effects of conventional treatments, wig services and other wellbeing support.

The centres are also a vital space for support groups, counselling and other forms of emotional support. It costs more than £300,000 per year to run the centres and all of this is paid for by your generous donations.

To find out more, visit our JustGiving page at https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/trinity-holistic