I wanted to take a moment to write to you and say thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the sunshine bag you gave us. It meant more than I can properly put into words.
My beautiful niece, Maebel, passed away at Salford Royal Hospital. Maebel was just 18 months old. Maebel was found unresponsive in her bed, and her Mummy and Daddy tried everything they possibly could, performing CPR while waiting for help. Despite their desperate efforts, our precious girl sadly couldn’t be saved.
Losing her shattered our whole family in ways that are hard to explain. Maebel was so deeply loved, and the silence she has left behind is enormous.
Because Maebel’s trip to heaven was unexpected, her body endured a lot, and not being able to be close to her, to see her, kiss her or even touch her was the most painful time of my life.
When we received the sunshine bag, it brought a small but incredibly meaningful moment of comfort during a time that felt completely overwhelming. The thoughtfulness behind the sunshine bag, and the kindness it represents, really touched us. Knowing that it came from people who truly understand this kind of loss made it even more special.
I also wanted to say how deeply sorry I am for the loss of your beautiful son, Freddie. No parent or family should ever have to experience that kind of heartbreak. The love you clearly have for Freddie shines through in the work you do for other families, and it’s such a powerful and compassionate way to honour Freddie’s memory.
So many people try to understand, but unless you’ve walked this road, it’s impossible to fully grasp the depth of it (bare in mind I’m Aunty so I can’t even begin to imagine it from a parental point, this hurt is like nothing I have ever felt).
Maebel has 13 siblings (they all witnessed that traumatic and tragic morning) who are trying to understand and process the loss of their little sister.
Knowing that your charity exists because of the love you have for Freddie made us feel a little less alone in our pain. Thank you for turning your heartbreak into something that supports other families like ours. Your kindness reached us in one of the darkest moments of our lives, and we will always be grateful for that.
Maebel will always be our beautiful girl, forever loved and forever missed.
