Light Up a Life

Light Up a Life will last between 30-45 minutes.

The event will be led by our CEO, Stuart Palma, and is an opportunity to remember your loved ones. There will be moments of reflection, pieces of music, lighting and dedicating of candles together.

Our patient and family services team will be on hand if you’re upset or would like to talk to someone.

You are more than welcome to stay afterwards. There will be refreshments available and an opportunity to remember your loved one with our in-memory display, and you are welcome to visit our chapel if you would like some time of quiet reflection.

This year Light Up a Life will be held outside in the grounds at St Barnabas House, Titnore Lane, Worthing, West Sussex, BN12 6NZ.

As the event is being held at the hospice, parking will be limited. Please let us know on your booking form if you require a disabled parking space. Overflow parking has been kindly provided by our neighbour, Northbrook College (Littlehampton Rd, Goring-by-Sea, Worthing BN12 6NU).

The nearest train station is Goring-by-Sea.

There is a bus that stops nearby: Stagecoach bus number 9 (Shoreham-by-Sea to Arundel).

Please don’t worry if you are running late, you can join the event once you arrive. All we would kindly ask is that you join as quietly as possible.

After reviewing feedback and considering the purpose of the event, we felt it was important to bring Light Up a Life back to the hospice. Holding it here provides a more meaningful and intimate setting, allowing families and supporters to directly connect with the heart of our care. The hospice grounds offer a special atmosphere of reflection and remembrance that is unique to this location.

Additionally, hosting the event at the hospice helps strengthen the bond between the community and the care we provide, reminding people why their support matters. Practical factors such as easier access to our in-memory display and reduced venue hire costs have also played a part in the decision.

Light Up a Life is free to attend. 

However, donations toward the hospice are all greatly appreciated. 

• On the evening, there will be collection buckets dotted around. There will also be members of staff on hand with card machines. 
• Alternatively, you can donate quickly and securely online.

Light Up a Life is your chance to remember a loved one no longer with us, reflect on the joy they brought us and be thankful for the time we had together.

If you have remembered your loved ones through our online dedication, then their names will be displayed on our Heartfelt Memories page. All the dedications received will form a wonderful in-memory display on the windows of the main reception at the hospice throughout the festive period. The display will be available to view from Friday 12 December until the new year.

On the night of the event, we will be joining together to each light a candle in remembrance of our loved ones.

Everyone is welcome to attend. Your loved one doesn’t need to have been supported by St Barnabas House for you to attend. 

Children are also very welcome, although, please bear in mind there are quiet times to reflect and remember so this event may not be appropriate for very young children.

Dogs are not able to attend, apart from assistance dogs. Please let us know if you’ll be bringing an assistance animal with you when you make your booking (there is an option to share accessibility requirements on the form).

Light Up a Life is open to all, whether you have a faith or not. It is designed to be inclusive for everyone, offering a gentle and supportive space where people of all faiths and none can come together to reflect and remember. Members of our patient and family services team will be on hand should you wish to talk to someone.

In place of a programme, names of loved ones being remembered will be displayed on the windows of main reception at St Barnabas.

These displays will be in place throughout the festive season, and supporters are warmly invited to visit and spend a quiet moment at a time that suits them.

The supporter care team is on hand in reception to help people with finding their loved one’s name on the display and can add additional names as needed.

We understand that grief is not linear and that everyone mourns differently. If you’re unable to attend the event but would still like to remember your loved one, you are warmly welcome to come into the hospice at any time and make a dedication to them on the winter in-memory display.

The display will be open from Friday 12 December until the new year. If you are unable to visit in person, you can make a dedication on our Heartfelt Memories page. This is a meaningful way to honour and reflect on your loved one in your own time and space.