It could be said that Lenny Boyd and fundraising go hand in hand.  Lenny first became involved with the Ayrshire Hospice when his mother-in-law, Isabel (Bella) McAllister was cared for in the hospice and died in the In-Patient Unit in 2013. 

 
Lenny and his family were so touched by the care and support that Isabel and the family received that they wanted to give something back and to raise funds in aid of the Ayrshire Hospice.  Lenny’s motivation was driven to hold an activity or event in his local community: Lenny did not just want to take part in a hospice organised event but instead give his time, talents and efforts to organising his own event and raise funds in a unique way.
   
Lenny Boyd first got involved in fundraising when he took part in the Grand Challenge fundraising campaign where supporters were invited to raise a minimum of £1,000 through holding their own event or sponsored challenge in aid of the hospice.  Lenny raised £4,405.26 for the Grand Challenge and achieved the 12th highest income out of 49 participants.  Lenny quickly caught the fundraising “bug” and was keen to continue raising vital funds and to make the event bigger and better. 

Lenny then established the name “Bella’s Bawl”, a battle of the bands event and again held in loving memory of Isabel.  The event features a variety of rock bands performing their own material and Lenny himself has even performed as part of his own band, The Sneaks.  Lenny has clearly capitalised on his strengths throughout his fundraising: he has selected the subject of music which he enjoys and is extremely passionate enabling this enthusiasm to transfer to achieve excellent fundraising. 

Prior to this year’s event, Lenny has organised Bella’s Bawl each year between 2014-2016 and raised over £12,000 over the three years with a host of terrific raffle and auction prizes that Lenny has managed to secure over the years.  Over the past four years, these amazing prizes have included stunning city break holidays donated by local travel agents.

Lenny is an avid user of social media and regularly interacts with his supporters to market Bella’s Bawl and maintain supporter engagement.  
    
Lenny has two daughters and is clearly family and community oriented as can be seen through activities that he arranges for families at his fundraising event: Bella’s Bawl has always been family-friendly as Lenny arranges activities where children can easily take part and enjoy the fun of the day.

Throughout 2012-2019 Lenny has raised over £30,000 in aid of the Ayrshire Hospice.  Lenny has developed strong relationships with his supporters – individuals and organisations – who have donated financially, given raffle and auction prizes, or given their time to the running of the Bella’s Bawl event and the hospice.

Volunteer fundraisers like Lenny are like shining lights in their communities: they inspire others through their selfless actions as they generously give their time, talents and skills to fund the exceptional care and support that is delivered to patients and families at the Ayrshire Hospice.  The support of Lenny is truly valued and never taken for granted – he is simply one of our hospice stars.