Why you might see 1,000 people walking together on a Saturday night

Around 1,000 people are expected to light up the sky as they walk through Merseyside together next month. It comes as part of Claire House’s lantern walk which is held in memory of loved ones.

Families will walk side by side in memory or celebration of loved ones to raise money and awareness for the children’s hospice, which has helped hundreds of seriously and terminally ill children and their families. The families will walk a 6km route from Seacombe Ferry Terminal to Vale Park and back, carrying lanterns along the way.

Claire House has been the “lifeline” for many families across Merseyside, including Katie Lowe, whose eight-year-old daughter, Ava, sadly died after being diagnosed with Metachromatic Leukodystrophy, which is a rare condition.

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Katie told the ECHO how the family wouldn’t have had the strength to get through what happened without the support of Claire House. She said: “Claire House was like a saving grace for us. They helped me, her dad and everyone through everything. We had days out with them, overnight stays, everything. They were brilliant

“I can't explain how much they helped us. They went above and beyond and made it so special. Even now I get counselling every week at Claire House, they have been constantly involved.” The family have since raised over £2,000 for the hospice as their way of saying thank you for the continued support. Katie added: “I want to give back as much as I can for them and raise money to help them and keep Ava's memory alive.”

Event Information

The event will take place on Saturday, October 12, starting at Seacombe Ferry Terminal at 6.30pm. It’s advised to arrive from 5.30pm. The walk is organised in partnership with Eureka! Science + Discovery, where walkers can collect their lanterns before the evening and keep them afterwards. It costs £12 per adult and £6 per child for entry.

Event Fundraiser Mark Pearson says: “The hospice has been a light in the dark for hundreds of local families over the last 25 years, so we are excited to welcome people to the Claire House Lantern Walk.

“This is a great way to spend an autumn evening and we hope this year’s event will be the biggest so far, with many people walking in memory or celebration of a loved one. It is great to see the local community come out to walk together.”

There will be entertainment and activities along the way, such as the Wirral Samba Band and Wirral Pop Vox, as well as the Friends of Vale Park, who will light up the park. Last year, the event raised £15,000 for Claire House Children’s Hospice, which cares for seriously and terminally ill children and their families from across Wirral, Liverpool and beyond.

Mark added: “Last year the atmosphere was amazing. It was fantastic to see the lantern lights along the prom and that so many people had come out to support their local children’s hospice.” For more information and to sign up, click here.