Elsie Ever After

Over the last 11 years, we have given out 1,239 primary packs and 598 secondary packs to those who have contacted us via individual referrals and from organisations. Additional packs were given out to schools, children’s centres, doctors and professionals as part of our big pack giveaways which total over 3,400 packs altogether. The total number of people helped via direct referrals over the last 11 years is 2,954 comprising of 553 bereaved adults, 2,151 bereaved children and 250 professionals. Quotes from people who have been helped by our charity: Thank you again for being a light at what I thought was a dark and lonely tunnel. Thank you so much for taking the time to help desperate people like me who just don't know where to turn. Thank you all you have done for me today is more than anyone has helped me with in the last few months. Words are so difficult at times and I am unable to put together a sentence or two that says what I want to so hopefully these words convey everything. Beautiful, adorable, precious, admiration, strength, love, gratefulness. My son started art therapy yesterday and I know it is going to help him and without your help and support he would not have this. Thank you. Much love x Thank you for all you do. In my own search for support you were the only source of information and help and I’m very grateful for that. Just a quick message to say thanks so much to you for sorting the pack for my daughter. It’s been such a big help already & she's been filling in the kids book. She's been so brave over the last few weeks but it's helped her to understand what's been going on. Thank you xx (Quote from a mother who received a personalised pack from us for her daughter, to help her understand her dad’s suicide.) In March 2019, my youngest son died suddenly in hospital from pneumonia and Sepsis. X was not expected to die, and the shock was and continues to be traumatic. Within this shock, and trying to arrange the funeral and coping with my own and my families intense grief, I started to try to seek out some support for us with our bereavement. I went up lots of “cul de sacs” as I think of them now. This means that we did not seem to fit the criteria of the groups I contacted for support. One day, as I was shopping, I noticed a charity collection for Elsie ever after and read the description of their work. It seemed to offer some hope of what I was seeking. I rang Helen on my return home. I sobbed as I tried to speak to her of our loss. Helen was so nurturing and supportive helping me gently to speak to her about X and our needs as a family to find support. Helen spoke to me of her own loss of her daughter, Elsie and her efforts to develop bereavement support in this area for families. She sent me lots of contact details of other groups, most of whom she contacted on my behalf first, to see if it was appropriate. This was exactly what I needed, someone with compassion and understanding to get alongside me in my quest. I shall be ever grateful to her for this. Helen also sent out some books and materials which she thought would be of help to our friends’ children, who had known and loved X all of their lives. This was immensely helpful in them being able to talk about X and process what had happened. For some of the children, it was their first experience of the death of someone close to them.