Staff at Rosewarne, a residential care home for disabled adults with complex care needs in Camborne, are taking on the Macmillan plank challenge, in memory of their late friend, Leonie ‘Faith’ Griffin.
Faith, who was supported by the service for 54 years, died on 25 February, a week after her 71st birthday, from a brain tumour. She had previously needed a mastectomy following a breast cancer diagnosis.
She moved into the service in March 1968 and had cerebral palsy and was non-verbal and a wheelchair user. In later years, she had developed cataracts and a hearing impairment, but didn’t let this stop her from living life to the full.
The team wanted to honour her memory by participating in the Macmillan plank challenge to raise £300 for the cancer support charity.
They will be testing their stamina by holding the plank pose for as long as they can every morning throughout the month of March.
Cheryl Parker, manager at Rosewarne, said: “Faith was an inspiration to us all. Some of our team have been here 35 years and have known and loved her most of their professional lives, and she will be sorely missed.
“We only celebrated her birthday a couple of weeks ago, and we were painfully aware it could be her last one, but the staff at Table Table in Camborne pulled out all the stops to make it an amazing event for her.
“Last year, Rosewarne was shortlisted for an award, and we were invited to attend a national conference. Faith attended with two members of the staff to support her, and we assisted her in getting a new outfit and shoes. She was absolutely delighted and had a whale of a time. It was lovely.
“Even when she’d been really unwell, she didn’t give up. She was strong and courageous, and we wanted to honour her memory by doing something to build our own strength. The first couple of days have been really tough, but we’re sure if she could see us, she’d be giggling away at our efforts.
“Faith was a really special lady, and we want to help other people living with cancer to live as full and fun a life as she did.”
www.gofundme.com/f/help-cheryl-raise-funds-for-macmillan to donate to the Rosewarne plank challenge.
Rosewarne is operated by Ambito Care & Education, part of Salutem Care & Education, and is rated ‘good’ by the Care Quality Commission.
