The last year has been a year we’ll never forget. As country, we’ve suffered heart break like never before, we’ve lost loved ones well before their time, remained indoors and put many aspects of our life on hold. In response, we have adapted to a new way of living, mastering different skills and learning how to enjoy a ‘new normal’ and although it’s been a challenge, each one of us, in our own way, have helped in the fight against COVID-19.
Team Doncaster want to create a special and lasting monument to those key and essential workers who have supported our communities throughout the pandemic, as well as a tribute to those we have lost to this horrid illness.
Named ‘Hearts for Doncaster‘, standing at almost nine feet tall and 18 feet wide, this memorial (pictured below) will take pride of place within the centre of town (exact location to be confirmed). Shaped like a rainbow, the statue will be adorned with appropriately coloured hearts, each bearing a brief dedication to friends, family and loved ones, either in recognition of their efforts throughout the 12-month period, or instead in loving memory of someone sadly taken before their time.
Working with the British Ironworks Centre, the completed structure will feature 5,000 individually donated hearts, with all proceeds raised from the project going towards Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals Charity to be directly reinvested in patient care and treatment.
This is your opportunity to say ‘thank you’ to those who went above and beyond for you, whether it’s your friend, family, neighbour, colleagues, NHS and social care professionals, postman, waste collectors or supermarket worker – alternatively, you can dedicate a heart as an act of remembrance to those taken before their time.
Along with your heart, you can also print the below certificate to keep.
What will the final memorial look like?
The monument will take pride of place within Doncaster, in a location that is accessible to all. Standing at almost nine feet, and 18 feet wide, the Hearts for Doncaster memorial will provide a lasting and loving tribute to the efforts expended in battling COVID-19 locally, as well as those we have lost. The below are artist impressions.
What do the hearts look like?
Each heart is individually engraved with a special message, and every single donated shape will help to complete the rainbow. You can also download a certificate once you’ve purchased your heart here.
When will it be finished?
The intention is to complete fundraising by summer, with the memorial erected in mid-to-late 2021.
How can I help?
Dedicate and heart and help us spread the word using the hashtag #HeartsForDoncaster and your social media profiles.
Who are Team Doncaster?
Team Doncaster is formally recognised as the strategic partnership of organisations and individuals that spans the public, private, voluntary and community sectors. The Team Doncaster Strategic Partnership oversees four thematic partnerships that direct activity to where it is needed the most. Each theme helps to deliver improvements to the quality of life for Doncaster’s residents, and those working in and visiting the borough.
Constituent members include Doncaster Council, NHS Doncaster Clinical Commissioning Group, Doncaster and Bassetlaw Teaching Hospitals, Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust, amongst other public and private organisation in the borough.
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