Eternal Law comes to life (From The Northern Echo)

Eternal Law comes to life

12:50pm Tuesday 31st January 2012 in Whitby News

FORGET TV’s Eternal Law - angels and demons really will be walking the streets of York later this summer.

They will be taking part in the popular Midnight Walk, organised each year to raise funds for the city's St Leonard's Hospice.

This year it will be an all-women event for the first time - and the women are all being encouraged to dress with fluffy haloes or flashing horns to get them into the party mood.

The change to a women-only event comes after fundraisers compared notes with other hospices that run similar events.

They discovered that the hospices that had women-only midnight walks were able to attract many more entries and raise larger sums.

The St Leonard's Midnight Walk was first held in 2008 and has regularly attracted around 500 people - men and women - each time, raising between £25,000 and £30,000 each year. Other hospices have attracted more than 1,000 women and raised in excess of £100,000.

Fund-raising manager Sue Miller said: “IIn this uncertain economic climate we really need to raise as much as possible with the Midnight Walk, so we've changed to format to attempt to replicate the success of other hospices.

“For this year only we are allowing men who've walked before to join us one last time - through we can't accept entries from any other men.

“There is a vital role for them, though - we need lots for stewards and helpers on the night.”

The event takes place on June 23. For more information visit stleonardshospice.org.uk or call (01904) 777777.