Eighty-one-year-old has 80 parties in aid of St Barnabas House

From Lancashire to Las Vegas, 81-year-old Ian Jaggard, from Storrington, has travelled far and wide to host 80 birthday parties – all while raising funds for St Barnabas Hospice in memory of his late wife, Susan. 

Ian Jaggard has always been a bit of a party animal. But even he was flagging by the time he blew out the candles on his 81st birthday cake. 

That’s because the celebration was his 81st party that year, and the conclusion to a unique fundraising challenge for St Barnabas House, the Worthing hospice. 

Ian and his late wife Susan used to go in for birthdays in a big way. But after parties to celebrate his 50th, 60th and 70th, Ian found himself lacking the motivation to organise a large gathering for his 80th.  

Instead, he decided to celebrate with a host of smaller, more intimate parties – 80 of them, in fact. They would vary in size from two to 20,000, in locations from Lancashire to Las Vegas. Then Ian had a further flash of inspiration. For every party he hosted, he would donate £10 to St Barnabas House, the hospice that cared for Susan in her final weeks – and ask his guests to spare what they could afford, too.  

“I defined a party as a minimum of two people; food; alcohol; and congenial company,” says Ian. His biggest celebration was an Eagles concert, with 19,999 other fans. “Obviously, getting there took a lot of planning,” he says. “But other parties came together on the fly, which made them even more special in many ways. 

“This year has taught me some valuable lessons about spontaneity and living in the moment. Ten years ago, when Susan was dying, she urged me to get on with my life and to enjoy it. She’s always in my mind, but I try to look on the bright side of life and part of that is embracing new experiences. I’ve been lucky enough to find another lady to do that with – Angela came to 60 of my parties, including the seven I held in America.” 

There has been no shortage of emotional moments, including a family dinner in Suffolk. “For the first time in my life, I genuinely felt like the patriarch of the family, which was pretty special,” he says.  

Another touching moment came in Las Vegas, where he met a family from Atlanta celebrating their daughter’s eighth birthday. “It happened to be my great-niece’s birthday too, so we shared a toast to two special little girls – and they gave me $20 for St Barnabas,” he remembers.  

“My fellow golfers have been very supportive, including members at Ham Manor, where I host a golf day for St Barnabas every year.” 

Ian’s final 80th birthday was a tea party at St Barnabas House, where he presented a cheque for £2,000 and announced his next fundraising challenge for the hospice – walking 500 miles in his 81st year.  

Ian’s tireless fundraising on the charity’s behalf represents his gratitude for the care Susan received. “Just over ten years ago, I knew nothing about hospice care,” he says. “If I thought anything about hospices, it was that they were a place people went to die. 

“But the care Susan received quickly corrected my misconceptions. Now I do everything I can to help the organisation, including leaving a gift in my Will so that support continues even after I’ve gone.” 

Jayne Todd, Community Fundraising Manager for St Barnabas House, said: “We were delighted to be part of Ian’s milestone birthday celebrations, and we are so grateful to him for his continued support. St Barnabas House is here for local people as they navigate the most difficult times and, with only a small percentage of funding coming from government, we are reliant on the support of our community. Thank you, Ian, for everything you do for your local hospice.”