A CREWE woman has called time on her charity bingo sessions which have raised more than £8,500 for a local hospice.

Pauline Howarth has been a devoted supporter of the St. Luke's Hospice for 20 years, spending the last 10 years running bingo sessions at Crewe Bowling Club.

She began fundraising for the hospice after her daughter, Denise, sadly passed away from breast cancer at the age of just 38. Denise was cared for at the Winsford-based hospice for seven months and thought of it as her "home from home".

Pauline threw her support behind the hospice in her memory, first by playing St Luke's lottery each week.

Then from 2013 she went on to run her own bingo nights at the bowling club off Stanhope Avenue. They were held four times a year and became very popular.

Mandy Shaw, Community Partnerships Fundraiser said, "Pauline has been a huge help to the hospice over the years and is one of our most loyal supporters. Her continuous support has benefited us greatly and we can't thank her enough for her kindness and generosity over the years."

Pauline says she will still find ways to raise money for the hospice through delivering and collecting donation boxes between her family and friends.

She said: "We didn't realise what a hospice really did until we needed it. It was our second home and first home to our daughter Denise. They looked after all of us, not just Denise, and they made a very sad and difficult journey more bearable."

St Luke's said: "We are extremely grateful for all our supporters but long-standing, loyal donors like Pauline are sometimes hard to come by."

For more information on how to become involved with St Luke's and help make a positive impact go here.