Our Story

This September, we’re both taking on STEPtember for Francis House, and on October 5th I’ll also be running the Francis House Heaton Park 10K — all in memory of our daughter, Aria.

Francis House Hospice was there for us when we needed them most. At the end of Aria’s journey, they welcomed us in and gave us a home away from home. They created a safe and loving space for her to be comfortable outside of hospital, and they looked after us as a family with such care and compassion. Even after Aria passed, they supported us through the hardest moments and took on the painful responsibilities that follow a loss — so we could focus on holding onto our little girl.

Francis House is only able to provide this kind of care because of the generosity of others. By walking STEPtember together and by running the 10K, we want to say thank you. We want to give back, so that other families can feel the same love and support we did when the unimaginable happened.

Aria was just 20 months old, but she lived her short life with so much light, joy, and love. Every step and every mile in her name is our way of carrying that light forward — while honouring Francis House for the comfort they gave us when we needed it most.

💜 From Pooja:

On the 9th of August, my world ended. That was the day our beautiful Aria took her last breath. Since then, I’ve been living with a grief that makes it hard to breathe — some days it feels like I’m drowning, some days like I’m only half alive.

There was a time when, at my lowest, I coped in ways that only broke me further. After losing Aria, I know how easy it would be to fall back down that road again. But I don’t want to. Aria deserves more from me than that.

That’s why I’m walking STEPtember — not to “get fit” or “lose weight,” but to survive. To walk through my grief instead of letting it bury me. Every step I take will be for her: for the laughter I’ll never hear, the cuddles I’ll never feel, the life she should have had.

Supporting Francis House feels like another way to keep Aria’s light alive in this world. They gave us love, dignity, and care when it mattered most, and now we want to carry that forward — step by painful step, always for Aria. 💜