This December, we invite you to join us in lighting up a life, just as Teresa will, by dedicating a light in memory of her dad, Colin - and donating to support patients and families cared for by Mountbatten Hampshire. 

For Teresa, Mountbatten made the saddest time of her life bearable. "For me, lighting a candle is not just a tribute to him but also a way of remembering the incredible nurses and staff who looked after us all.

I will forever be grateful. Our first connection with Mountbatten was through the community team, who visited Dad at home and provided such amazing care in the weeks leading up to his transfer to the hospice."

Teresa's Dad, Colin was scared of the idea of coming to the hospice at first, "but when we arrived, everyone was just incredible", she says. "The kindness we experienced was overwhelming, and everything was handled with such dignity and compassion.

Nothing was ever too much for the staff — from fluffing Dad’s pillows to sharing a joke with him on his good days. Even when Dad was in and out of consciousness, the nurses would keep talking to him to make sure he knew what was going on."

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Donate and dedicate a light here. 

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Mountbatten's nurses didn't just look after Colin, they made sure Teresa felt supported too. 

"They looked after us as a family. They would let me visit him even if it was really early in the morning, always supplying us with endless cups of tea and reassuring words. Towards the end, I remember Dad saying he didn’t want to go home — he wanted to stay at the hospice. He was so happy there.

When I think of Dad dying, I try not to focus on the sadness. Instead, I think about how Mountbatten made his final weeks peaceful and calming, and how the support they gave us as a family made that possible.

That’s what I’ll be thinking of when I light a candle in his memory."

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Join us at Light up a Life on Sunday, 14 December. Together, we will honour the memory of loved ones with festive music, readings and a chance to light a candle in their name.