Julia’s Year To Remember, A Birthday, A Baby And A Big Win!
For nurse Julia Walsh, 2025 has been a year like no other. She became a grandmother for the first time, celebrated her 60th birthday, and received a surprise £6,000 windfall through ellenor’s weekly lottery.
Julia, assistant chief nurse at Darent Valley Hospital, couldn’t believe her luck when she received the unexpected call from ellenor’s lottery team telling her she was the latest rollover winner. Within a week, she had already booked a stay at a five-star hotel in Amsterdam and treated herself to a new laptop.
It was a normal day at Darent Valley Hospital, where Julia is assistant chief nurse, when she received the phone call that would leave her leaping for joy.
“I was just going into a meeting and my phone rang,” she said. “I don’t normally answer it at work, but I saw the call was from ellenor because their number is on my phone for work. It was someone talking about the lottery rollover and I thought maybe they were asking me to buy more tickets to increase my chances. But then they said I had been picked as their winner!
“The girls standing around me soon noticed my reaction – I was dancing around. It’s just been amazing and has finished off my 60th year beautifully.”
Julia lives near the hospice in Northfleet with her partner Paul. She has two adult children, Sean and Andrew, and has just become a grandmother to little Ronan, born within a week of her big Lottery win.
“He is so young but I am going to get his dad to set up a savings account so I can put some money in it for him for when he is a bit older,” she said.
Julia celebrated her 60th birthday in July with a “super” trip to Norfolk, staying by the river. Now, thanks to her ellenor win, the celebrations can continue a little longer, with a trip booked to Amsterdam in March and plans to get away with a few girlfriends as well. The remainder of the money will stay in her savings account for Christmas presents and rainy days.
Looking after patient experiences at Darent Valley is a job Julia loves. She is often in touch with staff at ellenor on a professional level.
She said: “I genuinely enjoy my job. I have been at Darent Valley for 23 years as ward sister, matron, operational lead for A&E and now assistant chief nurse.”
Working in healthcare is a bit of a tradition for Julia’s family. After her dad Michael Gale retired from his job with BT, he worked in sterile services at Darent Valley and now both her sons also work at the hospital.
Julia started doing the ellenor lottery after her dad died in the hospice in 2019 at the age of 74.
“Dad had pancreatic cancer, and he was exceptionally well cared for on the ward at ellenor. I couldn’t have faulted it,” said Julia.
Her mum Jennifer also appreciated the aftercare she was given by ellenor, where she attended bereavement cuppas, finding much needed support and companionship during her grief.
“We both have a lot of time for the hospice, and it’s just around the corner,” said Julia.
“The services ellenor provides now are wonderful. It just changes how you experience a relative’s death. Hospitals are noisy and less personal, and it is especially hard for a patient who is at the end of their life, and their family.”
“There is so much more at ellenor. People say hospices are somewhere you go to die, but I absolutely see the difference between hospitals and hospices. ellenor is so clean and lovely and everyone has the time they need.”
A recent tour of ellenor’s “amazing” new Wellbeing building left Julia even more impressed by the charity’s holistic approach towards its patients and their families.
Julia, who went to school at Shears Green, had wanted to be a nurse from the age of 14.
“I was absolutely set on having a career rather than getting married and starting a family. The sort of jobs open to us then were hairdressing, secretarial or nursing and I wanted to be a nurse so I could care for people,” she said.
“Hospice care is important to me; having somewhere that caters for death and dying and provides aftercare facilities. It’s a shame that hospices must be funded by charities, but if they were funded by the NHS you would have to be making cuts all over the place. Hospices are marvellous.”
Julia is no stranger to charities and fundraising. She heads the hospital’s own charity, Valley Hospital Charity. It raises money for extra equipment to make the hospital experience easier for patients, especially in the neonatal and paediatric department.
She said: “Staff get very engaged with things like sponsored sky dives and crazy bike rides, and we also deal with legacy giving. Having people who engage well with other people and can incentivise is so important.”
Through her own experiences, Julia knows how hard charities need to work to bring in vital funds and sees ellenor’s lottery as an easy way to support the hospice and its services on a regular basis without breaking the bank. As a thank you to the charity she also plans to increase her weekly play from one ticket to two!
Julia said: “Even if you don’t win, it’s one of the most fulfilling things you can do. You’re helping to make a difference to people’s lives – in life and in death – and supporting ellenor’s vital work with patients and families.”
ellenor’s weekly lottery costs just £2 per play and offers 53 prizes every week, including a rollover that can reach up to £10,000. To find out more or to sign up, visit https://www.ellenor.org/lottery
