WE are delighted that the Duke of York has agreed to open the St Leonard's Hospice extension.

His presence will crown a remarkable fundraising campaign. The Evening Press Hospice 2000 Appeal was our most ambitious ever, by some margin. We joined with the staff and volunteers at the Tadcaster Road hospice in a bid to raise £2 million for a new annexe.

It seemed appropriate to mark the Millennium with a project on a grand scale. But when we launched the appeal we acknowledged the size of the task ahead: "This is our biggest-ever appeal, to mark the biggest event in 40 generations - a new Millennium," we wrote. "The £2 million target sounds daunting but we know with your help we can meet it."

Our faith was not misplaced. Thanks to an extraordinary effort by readers in and around York, the target was reached and the annexe built.

Everyone who contributed should take pride in this superb facility. It offers new levels of comfort and privacy to patients.

The main hospice building also has a new look. Previously cramped conditions have been transformed, with family accommodation and a new day care centre.

These improvements enable hospice staff to continue to offer the very highest standards of care and comfort to people in their final days.

Prince Andrew's visit next month will celebrate that most rare thing - a Millennium project which is an out-and-out success story.

It also confirms the Prince's commitment to this region. He has become a true friend to the city whose name his title bears - and to Yorkshire as a whole.

On the same day as his hospice visit, Prince Andrew will tour the Great Yorkshire Show. A royal endorsement is a timely boost to this major event as organisers seek to erase the bad memories of last year's cancellation due to foot-and-mouth disease.

With carefully considered engagements like these, the renewed public warmth towards the Royal Family is sure to continue.

Updated: 11:52 Friday, June 07, 2002