Heartfelt thanks Mum’s message for memorial appeal
AMUM who battled in vain to save her “happy, little chappie” who died at less than four months old will be able to keep her “beautiful boy” close to her heart after Good Samaritans stepped in to help her say goodbye.
From a businessman who gave a whopping £2,500 to hard-up mums who donated £5, generous souls came forward to support Jasmine Heasman through the heartbreak of registering her son’s life and death on the same day.
And Freddie’s funeral was even more beautiful than she had dreamed of after the Flower Man from Cheltenham agreed to supply hundreds of pounds worth of blooms for free.
Penny Handley and Tannith Heasman set up a fundraising page because they could see that only being able to afford a basic funeral, and knowing she could not have a necklace made from his ashes to keep him close to her heart, was adding to Jasmine’s grief.
Bishop’s Cleeve businessman and new dad Andy Haycock was so moved after reading Jasmine’s story that he stumped up the whole £2,500.
But the donations kept flooding in and it now stands at more than £4,000.
“It’s been insane and I would like to thank each and every one of the them from the bottom of my heart,” said Jasmine, known as Jazz, who says her and her two young daughters are missing Freddie.
“What Andy has done is amazing but I’m also just as grateful to all those people who donated £5 and £10 because I know that for many of them it could have been the last pound they had.
“I want them to know it has made all the difference.
“I was worried about not being able to afford Freddie’s name in flowers and now Lucy from the Flower Man has agreed to do that and will also be giving us wreaths and loose flowers. She was so helpful and could not have done more.
“I couldn’t have done any of that without this appeal but it means my daughters will have somewhere to remember Freddie as they grow up.”
Freddie was just 4lbs when he was born at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital on February 18, a much-wanted little brother for Summer, aged seven, and Izzy, 18 months.
But Freddie struggled to thrive and on Sunday June 7, when he was just 15 weeks old, he died at home in Prestbury despite Jasmine’s efforts to perform CPR to save him.
The story of how the 25-year-old single mum had been left traumatised and shell-shocked by the experience resonated with Gloucestershire entrepreneur Andy Haycock, CEO of Lead 365, and his partner Yasmin so they donated £2,500, the original appeal target.
“Jasmine’s story struck a chord with me,” he said.
“The birth of her son was only three weeks after the birth of my first daughter Isla, in the same hospital and geographically we’re only separated by a couple of miles.
“I feel it is important for local business owners to uphold their social responsibilities, and where possible help those in their time of need”
Jasmine says she cannot thank people enough for helping her to say farewell to Freddie because it is the last thing she can do for her son who she remembers as a “happy little chappie,” who took everything in his stride.
His funeral was held at the crematorium in Cheltenham on Tuesday, July 21.