67-year-old Cheltenham resident Pamela Bertoni is putting the finishing touches to her Christmas Market in support of Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice.

The festive fundraiser, which is being held at Middleton House on Pilley Lane in Leckhampton from 2pm until 5pm on Friday 30th November, will be raising funds for the Gloucestershire hospice which has supported Pamela, who has MS, over the past few years.

She said: “It’s my way of giving something back. I just wish I could do more.

“I am putting everything into my third and final Christmas Market.”

The event will offer festive fun for all the family with Christmas music, mince pies and hot chocolate. There will also be a tombola, raffle and a selection of stalls selling crafts, Christmas decorations, jams and chutneys, high-quality second-hand clothes, handbags, bespoke knitted items and books.

Over the past two years Pamela has raised £2,400 for the charity holding the Christmas Market at retirement living accommodation, Middleton House, and hopes to raise the most ever in her final year organising the event.

She continued: “I am putting an extra special effort to make sure this year’s Christmas Market is the best yet, as I know I won’t be doing it again as my MS is starting to make things more difficult. In the first year I raised £1,100 and last year I raised £1,300. I am putting everything I can into raising as much as I can this year – I’d love to raise £1,500!

“I might not be able to do as much as I once used to, but I have been working hard on putting together some fantastic raffle prizes and sending off lots of emails and making phone calls. I am working with fantastic volunteers from the hospice and staff from Middleton House to put on this year’s event, and I am so grateful to everyone for their support.

“Yes, it is not the life I wanted but this is what I got, and I just get on with it and get out there. I might not be able to do as much as I used to, but I won’t let MS stop me. I tell my MS you’re not taking over just yet!”

Pamela, who was first diagnosed with MS in her late 20s, has received care at Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Day Hospice over the past few years, and it was this care which propelled her to do something to raise vital funds for the charity.

“I can’t put into words what I feel about the Sue Ryder,” she adds. “They have been so good to me in the last few years as my MS has progressed. The day hospice is fab.

“Everybody is wonderful from the volunteers to the Sue Ryder Nurses, to the complementary therapists to the people in the art room, to the doctors and support staff. The lunch is fantastic too! I really can’t say enough about the support they give.

“They all give true care. They’re all super.”

Pamela is really looking forward to this year’s event, as her sister will be travelling up from Devon to be there.

She continued: “It’s so lovely that my sister will be here to see the market this year. I am really looking forward to welcoming lots of people to the event. It’s a fantastic venue and we have a great restaurant. We love the Christmas Market as there is always such a fantastic buzz.”

The Middleton House Christmas Market in support of Sue Ryder Leckhampton Court Hospice takes place at 2pm until 5pm on Friday 30th November. The event is free to enter with plenty of free parking available nearby.