Matthew Leach
Freya1410
Fundraising for Our Angels Charity & Support Group
Story
Thank you for visiting my Just Giving page.
On the 14th October 2017 my wife Lee-Anne gave birth to our baby girl Freya. She was stillborn at 33 weeks and this was a complete shock to us both. We spent the next few days in the Ferndale Suite at Harrogate Hospital, a special room on the maternity unit which provides parents chance to spend time with their stillborn baby. Although this was a devastating time for us and our families we took a lot of comfort from the support of the midwives at Harrogate Hospital and also Our Angels, who provided a memory box which we could use to begin to make some memories with Freya in those precious few days spent in the Ferndale Suite. This also allowed us chance to talk through with bereavement midwives about the next steps.
I have decided that I want to raise money for Our Angels who are based in Harrogate were we live and have helped support many families through the bereavement of a baby. They also work alongside some of the staff at Harrogate Hospital Maternity Unit to try and make the heart breaking experience of losing a baby a little easier to go through. Part of the funds raised will go towards refurbishment of the Ferndale Suite.
I will be running 1410km in 287 days (35K a week for 41 weeks) which will take me to the 14th October 2018 which falls at the end of Baby Loss awareness week and will be a year since Freya was born.
I will update my progress along the way on Instagram - @mjleach1984, Strava (Matthew Leach) where I will be recording my activity, and on Facebook!
So please dig deep and donate what you can. At the time of writing this since Freya's birth another 900 families in the UK will have gone through a still birth. Even if this just raises awareness then it will begin to make this subject a less taboo one, with the amazing support we have received from our family, friends and work colleagues it has helped tremendously in managing with our new normal and just being able to talk to people about it is the starting point.
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
On the 14th October 2017 my wife Lee-Anne gave birth to our baby girl Freya. She was stillborn at 33 weeks and this was a complete shock to us both. We spent the next few days in the Ferndale Suite at Harrogate Hospital, a special room on the maternity unit which provides parents chance to spend time with their stillborn baby. Although this was a devastating time for us and our families we took a lot of comfort from the support of the midwives at Harrogate Hospital and also Our Angels, who provided a memory box which we could use to begin to make some memories with Freya in those precious few days spent in the Ferndale Suite. This also allowed us chance to talk through with bereavement midwives about the next steps.
I have decided that I want to raise money for Our Angels who are based in Harrogate were we live and have helped support many families through the bereavement of a baby. They also work alongside some of the staff at Harrogate Hospital Maternity Unit to try and make the heart breaking experience of losing a baby a little easier to go through. Part of the funds raised will go towards refurbishment of the Ferndale Suite.
I will be running 1410km in 287 days (35K a week for 41 weeks) which will take me to the 14th October 2018 which falls at the end of Baby Loss awareness week and will be a year since Freya was born.
I will update my progress along the way on Instagram - @mjleach1984, Strava (Matthew Leach) where I will be recording my activity, and on Facebook!
So please dig deep and donate what you can. At the time of writing this since Freya's birth another 900 families in the UK will have gone through a still birth. Even if this just raises awareness then it will begin to make this subject a less taboo one, with the amazing support we have received from our family, friends and work colleagues it has helped tremendously in managing with our new normal and just being able to talk to people about it is the starting point.
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving - they'll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they'll send your money directly to the charity. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.