Community-owned wind farm, Point and Sandwick Trust (PST) has reached a significant milestone in its long-standing support for Bethesda Hospice in Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis, with total contributions now exceeding £500,000 over the last decade.
The achievement reflects years of sustained community-focused investment by PST, supporting specialist palliative and end-of-life care delivered by Bethesda Hospice, which provides essential care and support to patients and families across the Western Isles.
To mark the milestone, Carol Somerville and Joanne Ferguson from Bethesda Hospice visited the PST offices this week, meeting with the team to reflect on the impact of the funding and the long-standing partnership between the two organisations.
Carol Somerville, Chief Executive Officer of Bethesda Care Home and Hospice expressed her appreciation for the ongoing support, commenting, “For the past ten years, we have been incredibly fortunate to receive the generous support from Point and Sandwick Trust. Their continued commitment has made a meaningful difference to the Bethesda Hospice, helping us provide compassionate care and support to patients and their families when they need it most.
A decade of dedicated fundraising is an extraordinary achievement and reflects not only generosity, but also a genuine commitment to the local community. Every donation has helped ensure that our services remain available to those facing life’s most difficult moments.
On behalf of everyone at Bethesda, our patients, their families and friends and our staff, we extend our heartfelt thanks for ten years of unwavering support. We look forward to continuing this valued relationship with Point and Sandwick Trust for many years to come.”
Representatives from Point and Sandwick Trust highlighted that reaching the £500,000 mark represents far more than a financial figure, describing it as a reflection of community-led renewable energy investment being reinvested directly into local health and wellbeing.
PST Manager DJ MacSween said, “Reaching the half a million-pound milestone in our support for Bethesda Hospice is something we are incredibly proud of. Bethesda provides an essential and deeply valued service to families right across the islands, and it is a privilege for PST to be able to continue playing a part in supporting that work. Bethesda was the first project that we pledged financial support to before the wind turbines were even installed and we have maintained that support year on year.”
The milestone underscores PST’s continued commitment to ensuring that the benefits of local renewable energy generation are returned directly to communities across the Isle of Lewis.
Photo shows: Catherine Anne Smith, Norman Mackenzie (PST) with Carol Somerville, Joanne Ferguson (Bethesda) and Rhoda Mackenzie and DJ MacSween (PST) at the PST offices in Knock.
Credit: SandiePhotos