‘A Thousand Cranes’ for Hospice Care

Last year’s Money Multiplier Challenge saw local companies competing to raise funds for Arthur Rank Hospice Charity.

Starting with just a £50 seed fund, there was a huge variety of activities undertaken and nine months on and after many hours of work, the team from Voisin Consulting Life Sciences (VCLS) have finally finished their creative challenge raising over £1,000 in the process.

The art piece is made from 1,000 coloured paper cranes, each one carefully folded by colleagues at VCLS, members of the local community at St John’s Innovation Centre, friends, families and people connected with the Charity. Everyone who took part kindly donated a small sum to have their crane included in the final display.

Cecilia Mullin, Regulatory Scientist at VCLS, who led the team, explained why they chose origami as a way to fundraise:

“We were looking for creative ways to raise money during the Money Multiplier challenge and I came up with the idea of folding ‘A Thousand Cranes’ for Hospice Care. Origami has been a passion of mine for many years but this project also had a very personal meaning for me.

2026 marked the 10-year anniversary of my dad’s passing from lung cancer. When he was receiving hospice care, I would often sit with him and make origami pieces while we chatted. They brought him, and the hospice staff around him, so much joy during a very difficult time. I wanted to see if I could bring some of that same joy to Arthur Rank Hospice while also raising money for the Charity.

Rather than just folding the cranes ourselves, we thought it would be more meaningful to involve the wider community and create something together — an artwork made up of 1,000 individual paper cranes, each one folded by someone who wanted to contribute.

So, I created a tutorial video and taught my colleagues and anyone I could rope in to fold them! Each individual crane is delicate but together they become something much stronger and more beautiful.

The finished artwork brings together the fundraising, the community and my own personal connection to hospice care. I hope it serves as a lasting reminder of the people supported by Arthur Rank Hospice Charity and of the care, compassion and togetherness that surround them.”

Sam Gardiner, HR & Operations Manager at VCLS, added:

“We chose Arthur Rank Hospice Charity as our chosen charity because its work closely aligns with our values and our role in helping bring medicines to patients throughout their healthcare journey. We recognise that caring for patients extends far beyond treatment alone, and the hospice’s dedication to supporting people with long-term and life-limiting illnesses, as well as their families, deeply resonates with us.

We were especially inspired by our colleague Cecilia Mullin’s idea, A Thousand Cranes for Charity, which symbolises hope, strength and compassion, qualities that perfectly reflect the outstanding care and support provided by Arthur Rank Hospice Charity. We are proud to have been part of this project and to support such an important local charity that makes a real difference to so many lives.”

The grand unveiling of the artwork took place at the Hospice during a Living Well session where patients and staff members were invited to take part in some origami creations of their own.

The artwork represents the patient (a multi-coloured paper crane) at the centre of support, from the many people and services around them (represented by the different coloured cranes), forming a large heart. It is now proudly on display at Arthur Rank Hospice, in Shelford Bottom, for all to admire and is a wonderful and colourful example of community spirit and of the support shown to Arthur Rank Hospice Charity.

If you would like to view the art work on display please visit one of our Open Day sessions. 

Thank you to everyone involved in this project and especially to Cecilia for taking the lead and finishing the thousandth origami crane!

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If your organisation would like to support Arthur rank Hospice Charity, please email partnerships@arhc.org.uk

(Please note, any artwork for display at the Hospice requires prior permission).