County-Wide Heart Trail Supports Care in the Community Trail

An exciting new art trail by St Barnabas Hospice launches across Lincolnshire this Saturday, 10^th June, running until 4^th September.

The HeART Trail is the biggest art trail Lincolnshire has ever seen, extending beyond Lincoln’s city borders.

Fun for the whole family, thirty beautiful heart-shaped sculptures are currently being installed in Boston, Gainsborough, Grantham, Lincoln, Louth, Skegness, Spalding, and various areas on the East Coast.

Trail guides and maps with information about each sculpture and blank mini hearts to decorate can be bought in St Barnabas charity shops, at Lincoln’s Visitor Information Centre and at the Trail’s HeART Hubs, which will be hosted across the county this summer.

The HeART Trail will spread joy by sharing handmade artworks with the community and raise awareness for the vital care St Barnabas provides to people with a life-limiting or terminal illness.

The charity’s clinical teams offer care and support in its Wellbeing Centres around the county, 24-hour care in our two Inpatient Units in Grantham and Lincoln, and in people’s homes around Lincolnshire.

One such patient is Lisa Hartley from Spalding, who lives with chronic heart failure. She was given 48 hours to live in 2020. Instead, she left the hospital after two weeks and has been receiving support from St Barnabas ever since.

Lisa said:

“When St Barnabas nurses started looking after me at home, I was on end-of-life care and bedridden. Thanks to their medication and care plan, I slowly started to feel better, against all odds!

“For over three years now, they have given me medical care, counselling to help with my mental health, and even financial advice to help me claim the benefits and grants I’m entitled to. When I needed it, they gave me specialist furniture to help my mobility, such as a powered wheelchair and a ramp.

“St Barnabas is such a lifeline; I don’t know what I would’ve done without them. All this support has been incredible, but the biggest miracle was the physiotherapy I received.”

A true animal-lover, Lisa owns three horses, including 27-year-old Monty, who has a terminal heart condition like his owner. Lisa’s biggest wish was to ride her beloved Monty again after being unable to get in the saddle for over 18 months.

Lisa said:

“I would never have imagined it when I was so poorly, but after a lot of hard work, I was able to ride Monty again, and it really was a dream come true. I have good and bad days; my health and overall well-being change daily.

“Thanks to St Barnabas, I can visit Monty and my other horses regularly, look after them at the stables and ride when I feel well enough. It is through their care that I can keep on being me.”

Lisa and Monty are immortalised on one of the HeART Trail sculptures, named Land Lover + Monty, designed and painted by Sandra Russell. This artwork depicts the beautiful Lincolnshire countryside, with the black and white stallion Monty and Lisa riding through green fields.

Lisa added:

“I recently attended the HeART Trail Reveal event where all the sculptures were on display for the first time, and when I saw this HeART, I was overcome with emotion. That’s Mont and me! It means so much, and it’s a wonderful piece of art. This sculpture will be displayed in my hometown of Spalding this weekend, and I’m incredibly honoured that I am representing this area.

“If you take part in the Trail this summer, you are in for a treat! Each sculpture is stunning; you can feel the love when you look at them. It’s such a fun way to get out and beyond and explore the whole of Lincolnshire.

“Please support St Barnabas by taking part in the HeART Trail so they can continue to care for people like me.”

The HeART Trail launches this weekend and will see its first information Hubs take place at Waterside Shopping Centre in Lincoln, Hildreds Shopping Centre in Skegness and the Farmers Market in Boston. At these locations, members of the public can buy Trail maps, guides, and blank hearts to decorate at home.

For the duration of the Trail, the Young at HeART mini trail will be hosted by the Waterside Shopping Centre.

This is a collection of sculptures made by students of nineteen schools and nurseries around the county to help young people understand the importance of supporting local hospice care, as well as providing a great collaborative educational art project for young minds.

To find out more about the HeART Trail, please visit: www.stbarnabashospice.co.uk/hearttrail.