By Isle of Wight Observer
Mountbatten has announce that Major General Martin White CB CBE JP, Lord-Lieutenant of the Isle of Wight, is to become our Patron.
Major General Martin White has fulfilled the Lord-Lieutenant role since 2006. It is an honorary office, appointed by HM The Queen, and is the permanent representative of the Crown on the Isle of Wight.
The appointment recognises his growing support of Mountbatten’s work, which on any one day includes the 24/7 care of over 650 Islanders facing death and bereavement in the places that they live across the Island. This is in addition to Mountbatten’s hospice building in Newport, which houses 16 inpatient beds and a range of day services. The charity provides free bereavement support to people of any age, including children and families, regardless of whether the person was being cared for by Mountbatten at the time of their death. Expert teaching to other health and social care organisations forms an important part of Mountbatten’s commitment to improving end of life care for everyone across the Island. Central to Mountbatten is our commitment to developing a society which is much more comfortable and open with death, dying and bereavement.
Major General Martin White, who lives in Seaview with his wife, said: “I am delighted to become Patron of Mountbatten and to join a team which is recognised as being outstanding in what they do.
“We are so fortunate to have Mountbatten on the Isle of Wight, the only end of life care charity on the Island which provides free 24-hour care and support to patients and their families. Many people still don’t realise the breadth of what Mountbatten does, or what its supporters’ hard-earned fundraising supports them to achieve. As Patron, I hope to be able to tell that story to as many people as possible, so that we can ensure continued and growing support for this very special organisation that touches the lives of so many people on the Isle of Wight.”
Sara Weech, Chair of Mountbatten Board of Trustees, said: “This is such a wonderful appointment and I am delighted that Martin has agreed to extend his existing support to us in this way. Having someone who is so passionate about our Island community, and who is so interested in how we will continue to provide the highest quality of end of life care to our residents, is so important. Martin is highly qualified in so many ways to support our cause and I am sure he will help us continue to make a difference to Islanders facing death and bereavement when they need us most.”
Nigel Hartley, Mountbatten’s Chief Executive, said: “We are incredibly fortunate that Major General Martin White has agreed to support us, and to help explain how our work impacts the lives of Islanders. It is vital that the Island knows what their generous and tireless fundraising supports.
“This year and every year, we must raise over £7 million to ensure free end of life care is available to whoever needs it, wherever they need it. We receive a small amount of financial support from the NHS, but that is not guaranteed. As an independent Isle of Wight charity, neither are we currently supported financially by other national charities including Macmillan or Marie Curie. Our Mountbatten nurses are paid for through the generous donations and fundraising of our Island community.
“With Martin’s support, I am sure many more people will start to realise how vital their fundraising is to how we can care for people facing death, dying and bereavement in the future,” he added.
The role of Patron is voluntary and extends for a period of five years.
