Couple helping to fund garden in memory of girls
Grieving couple Holly and Ali Jay have raised more than £10,000 and made a significant donation to the Royal United Hospital in Bath in memory of their beloved baby girls Georgiana and Henrietta.
The donation to the hospital’s charity The Forever Friends Appeal and the baby loss charity Aching Arms will go towards creating an outdoor courtyard area next to the maternity unit’s Forget Me Not bereavement suite.
Holly and Ali considered different ways to remember their daughters and at the same time raise money for these charities.
“We wanted to do something that friends and families could be involved with,” said Holly. “With my dodgy knees and Ali’s bad back, running a marathon would not be wise for our bodies.”
However they completed a 70-mile sponsored walk around their local community, supported by friends, family and members of the community.
“By doing this, you can walk with us for part of the 24 hours, be there at the end, or donate any amount to help these wonderful causes,” Holly wrote on the crowdfunding site Just Giving.
The couple set a target of £1,000 but according to the website have now raised 1,050 per cent of that target figure.
At the start of Baby Loss Awareness Week, Ali and Holly presented a cheque to the midwives who cared for Georgiana and Henrietta at the RUH.
“We can’t say thank you enough to everyone who helped us to raise this money, and thank you to the amazing RUH staff who’ve done so much for us,” said Ali. “We really wanted to give back something to you and to do something positive to help other people who’ll experience the loss of a child.”
RUH bereavement midwife Bex Walsh said that the money they raised will make a real and lasting difference. “We’re really grateful to Ali and Holly for this incredibly generous donation,” she said.
Bex also stressed that it was really useful to help raise awareness of stillbirth and infant mortality so that families do not suffer in silence. “Talking about baby loss will help mums, dads, grandparents, aunts and uncles feel able to share their grief and honour their baby’s memory,” she said.
The Forget-me-not suite at RUH provides a space away from the maternity ward where grieving families can have the privacy they need. “Having a dedicated outdoor area will further improve this service we provide here,” she said.