It’s now popular to nominate a charity or charities for funeral attendees to donate to in memory of the person who has died. Whilst there are a few charities that are chosen frequently due to awareness of them being high, it’s worth considering a range of options in order to truly reflect someone’s wishes.
Local charities needing help
Within many local communities, there are smaller charities and groups that work to support those in the area. We at Freeman Brothers are familiar with many causes, largely because they reach out to us asking for help with their events, fundraising, or publicity, and it’s a great way for us to improve our knowledge of what’s available.
The nature of what’s available locally is typically dictated by the demographic. In our area of West Sussex, there are lots of groups working with young people who have additional needs, as well as those with specific health issues, such as dementia or cancer.
Charities for young people in Sussex
In Horsham, for example, Springboard supports children and young people by providing activities as well as employability sessions. Springboard was first established in 1992, so has worked with the community for over 30 years, and is highly valued.
Also in Horsham and offering similar support for an older demographic is The Butterfly Project. The organisation runs day trips and residential stays to help encourage independence for the young people they work with.
Near to our Hurstpierpoint office is the base of Kangaroos, another organisation which provides clubs and trips for people with disabilities and additional needs.
Cancer and health charities in Sussex
Our community team has supported The Olive Tree Cancer Support Centre and the Mary How Trust during the last few years. The Olive Tree offers alternative therapies and activities for those who have had or are having cancer treatment, and the Mary How Trust provides screening for cancer and other major health conditions in order to improve the health of the community.
More recently, we’ve learned about Tapestry Day Club, an organisation which helps people with early stage dementia to retain independence for as long as possible.
Other charities in Sussex
Our work has also enabled us to help Crawley Open House, a registered charity supporting those experiencing homelessness. The charity provides much more than temporary accommodation – they assist service users with steps towards employment, healthcare, and other vital elements of maintaining independence, as well as supporting these people in the community rather than just via their centre.
Horsham Matters helps to relieve hardship via the provision of food and other essential items. We are proud to have supported their warm spaces during the winter, which is a service that allows people to have somewhere safe and warm to spend a day, as well as accessing subsidised, quality food.
Reasons to support a local charity
For smaller, local charities, donations are generally highly meaningful. Sending donations in their direction allows us to help take care of those in our immediate surroundings. Sometimes, it’s difficult to access support from larger, national charities, and it tends to come in the way of information and helplines, rather than practical and ongoing assistance.
You may be surprised to learn exactly the breadth of help available locally – we have only mentioned a few here, but there are many more clubs and organisations we know of that provide similar assistance. Causes such as stroke, disability sport, mental health care, and much more are all represented in our areas. It’s simply a case of knowing where to go to find out more. No matter how small the organisation is, as long as we are able to get in touch with them, even if they haven’t been nominated to receive donations previously, we will be able to add them to your tribute page so that they can be recognised and supported.
