100 Kilometres for 100 Years

 

Earlier this year, Sarah Pugh and her friend, Helene, decided they wanted to do something special to celebrate their 50th birthdays. What better idea, they thought, than to try to walk 100km over 4 days! So, this is what they did during a week in July – in fact they walked nearly 110 km from Plymouth to Dartmouth along the South West Coast Path. Sarah’s family has, in her words, “benefited hugely from the existence and work of Guy’s Gift over the last couple of years” and she wanted to give something back – so she chose to raise some money for Guy’s Gift as a thank you. 

Sarah told us all about their adventure:

“The first day was interesting – finding our ‘walking legs’ and being drenched at least 3 times by downpours! However, being met by our B&B hostess at the end of the day in Noss Mayo with a ‘would you like a cup of tea and some homemade cake?’ became one of the highlights of the trip! The next 3 days were bathed in glorious sunshine so hats and sun-cream were donned and I even went swimming in the sea a couple of times! Everything went according to plan (thanks to Helene’s planning) – apart from the blisters (inevitable!) and some of the massive climbs (always preceded or followed by a downward slope, thank goodness!) – but all in all the walk was a tremendous success and we’re thinking of walking a little more of the path each year over the next decade...watch this space!!”

 Sarah looks out to sea.

 Helene and Sarah in Beesands.

Sarah and Helene raised over £280, which we think is rather wonderful. Thank you Sarah and Helene and many happy returns for your special birthday year!

A Big Cheer for a Long Serving Volunteer

After over 4 ½ years of working with Guy’s Gift, Grace, our longest serving volunteer, is hanging up her volunteering spurs. We couldn’t let Grace ‘retire’ without giving her a proper send off...

Grace was part of the very first group to be trained as Guy’s Gift volunteers, so she’s not only seen how the charity has developed from a pilot scheme to a fully fledged operation, she's also helped dozens of bereaved families in Warwickshire.

We’re incredibly grateful for everything that Grace has done for Guy’s Gift and she will be greatly missed.

 Here is Grace in 2010, accepting a cheque on Guy's Gift's behalf from Waitrose in Alcester.

We spoke to Grace to find out more about her time with us:

What inspired you to become a volunteer for Guy’s Gift?

I needed to do something after my husband died, so when I read an article in the local newspaper about Guy’s Gift it appealed to me as I get on very well with children. I read the article several times to be sure, then rang to find out more.

What was the best thing about being a volunteer for Guy’s Gift?

The children always seem pleased to see me. They talked to me about their feelings and I hope I helped them to understand. It was also something I could do on a day and time to suit me.

What’s been your most memorable experience of being a Guy’s Gift volunteer?

The Family Days at Hatton – I really enjoyed everything about them. It was hard listening to the parents talking about their losses and experiences, but it was good to meet everyone who came along.

What advice would you give to anyone thinking of volunteering for Guy’s Gift?

I’ve really enjoyed it and it’s a good thing to do. It was nice working with the children. I started volunteering after my husband had died and it gave me a focus. It was interesting to see how the children coped with their individual losses and also to see their understanding about what had happened. The children and I were in a similar situation and helping them helped me.

So all that remains for us to say is a huge “thank you” to Grace – not only from us but from all of the children that you have supported over the years. You have made a bigger difference than you will ever know.

Thank you White Stuff

Biscuit baker extraordinaire - Jackie O'Kelly

As you may know, Guy's Gift is White Stuff's chosen charity in its Leamington Spa store. We were thrilled to hear that they held a biscuit sale on our behalf during their recent customer event day.

Lots of biscuits were munched in aid of Guy's Gift and it sounds like everyone had a great day. A huge thank you to Jackie O'Kelly (White Stuff's biscuit baker extraordinaire) and all the team for continuing to champion our cause.

A Refreshing Day

We recently held a Refresher Day in Kenilworth for our wonderful team of volunteers. We all came together to catch up, share thoughts and learn some useful new skills. We even stood in the shoes of the bereaved children we support and told 'My Story' about a loss we'd encountered during our lives. Telling 'My Story' is an important part of Guy's Gift support programme and it was a moving, interesting and somewhat liberating experience for us all.

Guy's Gift's volunteers help us support bereaved children in Warwickshire by being a part of both one to one and group counselling sessions. Without them, we wouldn't be able to reach as many children and young people as we do...so we think they're rather fabulous.  

Towards the end of the day we spent a happy hour or so indulging in some art and craftiness. The idea was simple...using a glue stick, a piece of paper and a pile of magazines, we were tasked with creating a collage about anything we liked. There was much pondering over which pictures to include and the sounds of merry chatter and ripping paper filled the air! It was great fun, but there was a serious side to it all as it was introducing our volunteers to an activity that they could try with the bereaved children they support. Putting together a collage gives children a chance to create, relax, escape, chat...and not worry too much about being neat. It's also a great way for them to express what they're thinking about or how they're feeling and can become a useful talking point.

Here we all are with our collage creations. It was a great day and everyone agreed that it was lovely for us all to meet up, see old friends and even make some new ones.

Cause for Celebration

Five years ago today Guy's Gift began it's work with bereaved children and their families in Warwickshire. We've been on an amazing journey - from our first referral to now helping hundreds of children throughout the county.

On such a momentous day, here are a few words from Jackie Potter, one of Guy's Gift's founders and also the charity's Family Services and Training Manager:

"Just over five years ago we had a vision, an aim to establish a bereavement support service for children and young people in Warwickshire, which was, sadly, lacking at that time. That vision grew into Guy's Gift. Since the 1st of May 2009 we have seen the charity develop and become a valued member of the county's integrated care provision network. We can all be proud of the contribution that Guy's Gift makes. This success is in no small way due to Guy, as his own special life is the inspiration that continues to guide our work. His 'gift' has been to give us the drive and outreach to make a difference to the huge number of individuals and families that have benefitted from the support of the Guy's Gift team. I feel privileged to be part of such a caring team!"      

Guy - an inspiration.

Here's to the next five years...and beyond!

Lovely Leamington

As you may know, Guy's Gift is White Stuff's chosen charity in the Leamington Spa store. Last Wednesday we all left our desks behind to spend the day there, spreading the word about Guy's Gift and what we do.

 

Here's Laura outside the store.

 We had the spot just inside the door all to ourselves.

As well as handing out Guy's Gift leaflets and newsletters, we also had some Easter egg craft kits on offer.

The Guy's Gift logo sits proudly behind the shop's counter. The sweets in the jars are for sale and all the proceeds go directly to Guy's Gift. So next time you're in Leamington Spa and you fancy a treat...pop in to White Stuff for a bag of sweets and raise some money for a great cause at the same time!

Laura, Katie and Jackie.

It was great to meet lots of White Stuff's customers and we thoroughly enjoyed our day out. A big "thank you" to Richard, Monique and the team for having us to visit!

A Day in the Life of...Guy's Gift's Fundraiser

There's lots happening here at Guy's Gift. As well as supporting lots of children, young people and their families here in Warwickshire, we're also busily planning events in April, including a Family Day at Mockley Wood Farm and a fundraising day at White Stuff in Leamington Spa.

We thought it might be fun to go behind-the-scenes here at Guy's Gift and see what our Fundraiser (Katie) does. Here she is to tell you all about what she gets up to...

No two days are ever the same for me and that's part of why I love my job at Guy's Gift. My role involves everything to do with fundraising - from applying for funding and talking to lots of lovely people who do fundraising on the charity's behalf, to writing the Guy's Gift newsletter and thinking of new funding ideas. When I'm working from my office at home, I have our cat Phoebe to help me...she's usually very good at finding paperwork to sit on!

 

Writing letters, putting together the Guy's Gift newsletter, sending emails...it's all in a day's work for a Fundraiser!

I help to keep an ear out for phone calls too. If you ring the Guy's Gift telephone number you may find me on the other end.

Art and craft workshops play a big part in Guy's Gift events and I'm thrilled that we've just been given an exciting box jam packed with all sorts of crafty bits and bobs for us to use. A huge thank you must go to Groves + Banks (along with Trimits, Hemline and The Craft Factory) for sending us all of these goodies.

I'm currently working on an Easter egg decoration craft kit that we'll be selling as part of our fundraising day at White Stuff in Leamington Spa on 16th April. Instructions have been written, materials gathered and inspiration put down on paper, so all that's left for me to do is put them all together...and make a few decorations myself to display on the day.

If you or anyone you know would like to get involved in fundraising for Guy's Gift do get in touch, we'd be thrilled to hear from you.