Hospice launches campaign to raise funds for Birmingham’s bereaved children
Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice has today (22/07) launched ‘The Ground Feels Wobbly’, a six week campaign to raise funds for its Child Bereavement service, which offers support to children who have lost a loved one through terminal illness.
The campaign was inspired by the words of a 7 year old boy, who was describing how he felt when he was told his mother had a terminal illness. The Hospice offers a number of services for the families and carers of patients, including one-to-one support and advice for parents, children and healthcare professionals on childhood bereavement. It also runs childrens’ memory days, where families and children can come together to share memories of their loved ones.
Vicky Ross, Head of Family and Carer Support said: “Every year we care for over 1,000 terminally ill people, a lot of these patients have family’s that include young children. Whilst we can never make up for the loss of a parent or loved one, we can offer them help and support via our specially trained Child Bereavement Team. They are trained to give children expert counselling, answering the questions they may not feel especially comfortable asking and providing an extra guiding hand through difficult times. Our door is always open”
“This is a free service and we rely heavily on donations to run it ; we hope that this appeal will help us to raise the valuable funds that we need to support children, and show families that they are not alone”
Marie, a supporter of the Hospice whose children used the service said: “My husband passed away after battling colon cancer for 3 years. He was 39 and our children were 9, 7 and 5 at the time. Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice provided a safe and personal environment to allow each of my children to express their grief at their own pace. They always enjoyed their special time on their own with Karen, who used a variety of ways to get them to express their feelings, either by simply talking, if they were up for it, but mostly through games or crafts”
“What was really key for us is that we started coming to see Karen before the going got tough. The children got to build rapport with her before their dad died, which made it much easier for them in the transition period. She wasn’t a stranger”
People wishing to donate to the campaign can do so online via the campaign website www.thegroundfeelswobbly.org.