4Louis

TREASURED MEMORIES STORED FOR GRIEVING PARENTS 

PARENTS mourning the loss of a child will be given more support to help preserve their precious memories after staff at P&G (Procter & Gamble) in North Tyneside, backed a charity with a donation of more than £5,000.

Kirsty McGurrell started the charity 4Louis which helps grieving families after she lost her own son Louis when he was stillborn.

After struggling to cope with her grief, Kirsty, 24, from Houghton-le-Spring, decided to create memory boxes for families who have also lost a baby or child.

4Louis gives memory boxes to hospitals for parents whose child has died. Included in the box is a clay impression kit to make imprints of hands and feet. There is also a box for a lock of hair, a teddy for the family and the child they have lost, a glass angel and a card. Parents can use or discard any items from the box as they wish.

To date, 4Louis has delivered nearly five thousand memory boxes to 42 hospitals around the UK. The majority of the charity’s funding comes from families who have received memory boxes and – grateful for the support – have decided to fundraise for 4Louis.

4Louis also provides hospitals with cold cots where still born babies can be placed to give parents the chance to say goodbye.

Kirsty McGurrell, Director of 4Louis, said: “I’m so happy that P&G has chosen to make a donation to 4Louis.

“Seventeen babies are stillborn every day in the UK and in previous years mums may have left hospitals feeling disorientated and grief stricken – that is how I felt when I lost Louis. Memory boxes help families realise they are not alone.”

Tricia Copping, an employee at P&G’s Cobalt site in North Tyneside, nominated 4Louis for a charity donation from its Community Matters programme.

“The boxes these charities provide are not expensive, extravagant or difficult to create but they make a huge difference to mothers who are left feeling shocked,” she said.

“It must be devastating to return to a nursery you have decorated without a baby in your arms. I hope 4Louis continues to reach grieving mothers across the country and I know the team at P&G Cobalt feel their fundraising is going to an extremely valuable cause.”

Bob & Tracey from 4Louis can be seen pictured with Louisa Youle and Neil Fretwell who raised funds to donate the Cuddle Cot to Barnsley Hospital. This is the third Cuddle Cot that the charity has provided with more in the pipeline. Cath Jones was pleased to be presented with the unit in memory of Jaxon Sam Fretwell

Tracey & Bob from 4Louis with midwife Alison Bowes of Pinderfield Hospital in Wakefield being presented with a Cuddle Cot donated in memory of Ebony Louise Pace. This is the second Cuddle Cot that 4Louis have provided and many more to follow.

4Louis are delighted to have been able to send Nottingham Childrens Hospital a selection of our 4Louis memory boxes. The boxes will essentially be used in the A&E depts

The Sunderland AFC Branch Liason Council have selected 4Louis to be their charity of the year. Funds will be raised from the Player of The Year Awards and also a planned talk in with Manager Martin O'Neill. 4Louis will also be promoted in the match day programme and also invited on to the pitch at half time to collect a cheque. We would like to thank Ian Hedley who put us forward and Brian who presented our charity with passion.

Bob and Kirsty are pictured with Lynne Wray from the Department of Works and Pensions based in Seaham, County Durham. The DWP held events throughout the year after selecting 4Louis as their charity of the year. As you can see from the photograph 4Louis received a mammoth cheque for £2486.15. Thank you to everyone who took part and contributed.

Thank you to all the Staff at Spark Response who presented 4Louis with a cheque for £4,500. We were invited along with Marie Curie NE to receive the donation.

The Gateshead based contact centre and fulfilment specialist, which also owns and operates eCommerce retailers including Ethical Superstore, has been raising funds for the charity throughout the year and various events including a sports-themed family fun day, in celebration of London 2012.

The theme began in earnest as all guests were presented with a medal to hang round their neck in place of a more traditional ticket and attractions on the day included children’s rides and soft-play areas and a sports day with staff and their families competing in traditional fun races.

Charity funds were raised throughout the day through a raffle with prizes donated by Spark clients including Toys R Us, FitFlop, Kids Playstore and Micro Scooters. Some of Spark’s key suppliers, including infrastructure partner Knowledge IT and delivery partner Hermes, and a number of kind-hearted local business also donated prizes for the raffle.

The free event for staff was also supported by Barclays Bank and Dickinson Dees, who both part-match-funded the figure raised on the day taking the total amount to over £2,000.

Speaking of the event, Spark’s Managing Director, Peter Slee, said: “Once again the Spark fun day has been a great success and our theme was particularly timely and well received given the recent support for the London 2012 Games. Not only was the event a great way to say thank you to the whole team for their hard work, we have also managed to raise much needed funds for charities including 4Louis and Newcastle’s Marie Curie Hospice. This is by far the highest amount raised during any fun day since we launched the event in 2006. I’d like to thank everyone who played a part in making the day a success and also to the generous clients, suppliers and local businesses who have helped us to make this our most successful charity fun day to date.”

The fun day follows a staff sale, which raised over £5,500 for the charities. Staff were invited to attend the three-day event and could purchase products from clients’ at highly discounted rates, with all proceeds being added to the fund for the charities. The staff sales are held every year and are responsible for the majority of the funds raised by Spark staff, which looks set to exceed £13,000 this year. This will be the highest annual amount raised by staff at the company since records began in 2005.

THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO TOOK PART AND DONATED. x

The Neonatal Unit at Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport are the latest hospital to be supplied by 4Louis.

Thanks to Will and Ollie Roney of RP Drilling who made a very kind and generous donation to 4Louis. Thank you for your kind support.

The 10th of December marks Louis' third birthday. Louis has made his mark here on earth and has helped so many bereaved parents who suffer the same as his mummy and daddy. HAPPY BIRTHDAY LOUIS. XXX Missed by us all xxx