Chester Pearce donates fruit trees to our Dorset care homes

Chester Pearce Funeral Service has marked its tenth anniversary by donating fruit trees to all our care homes in Dorset.

The family-run company, which opened its first office in Westbourne in 2010, works closely with us. So when it came to thinking about how to celebrate its first decade, Chester Pearce came up with the idea of gifting each of our nine Dorset residential care homes a British fruit tree.

Chester Pearce staff delivered the trees to every Agincare care and nursing home in Dorset. The team travelled from Bournemouth to Christchurch, Dorchester, Poole, Swanage, Weymouth and Wimborne. The trees were then left with the care home teams to find a suitable planting spot in each garden.

Although each of our affordable care homes in Dorset is different, they all have lovely outside spaces. Residents can comfortably enjoy activities, sit and chat, or simply watch the local wildlife outside. Some homes have a gardening club and others grow their own vegetables. All the homes were delighted to receive their fruit tree.

Sending best wishes to the residents and teams at Agincare’s Dorset care homes

Chester Pearce Managing Director, Stephen Nimmo, said:

“Since I created Chester Pearce Funeral Service 10 years ago, I have always greatly valued the relationship we have with our local care providers, and to look after residents as a continuation of their care is always a great privilege. The last few months have been extremely difficult for care homes, so we wanted to send our best wishes to Agincare’s care homes in Dorset in a tangible and positive way. We hope that each tree will bring pleasure to residents and staff as it establishes itself and grows, bearing fruit in the not too distant future.”

Apple crumble on the menu!

Matthew Dennis-Andrews, is the manager of Agincourt Care Home in Weymouth:

“We were delighted to receive the generous gift of an apple tree from Chester Pearce, and are all looking forward to watching it grow. We have a beautiful garden here at Agincourt Care Home. While living through these unprecedented times, we have all found our garden to be not just a safe place to enjoy, but also a relaxing haven of peace and beauty.

“Several of our residents are keen gardeners and they enjoy pottering in the garden and helping the gardener. The apple tree has taken pride of place by our fish pond. It was planted by two of our residents with our Activities Co-ordinator Carol. Thank you Stephen and team and congratulations on your tenth anniversary!”

Paul Beasley, the manager of our Blenheim Care Home in Bournemouth, added:

“The residents and staff at Blenheim are very grateful to Chester Pearce for their kind donation of an apple tree. We have found the perfect spot in our beautiful garden for our tree. We’re looking forward to making apple crumbles, pies and sauces with the fruit and enjoying watching it grow over the years to come.”

Supporting Cherry Tree Nursery

Sourcing the trees gave Chester Pearce a perfect opportunity to support Cherry Tree Nursery in Northbourne, which provides supportive sheltered work rehabilitation for people with severe and enduring mental illness. On its 4.5 acre site in Bournemouth, Cherry Tree Nursery is a commercial garden plant nursery growing more than 100,000 perennials, climbers, shrubs, grasses, bamboos, ferns, herbs, conifers and trees for sale to the horticultural trade and to the general public.

Volunteers find the nursery a safe place to work, where they can receive support from staff, share problems and experiences, and build social networks. The nursery is open to the public from Tuesdays to Sundays, 10am–3pm.