Petals - Our Chosen Charity for August
Each month, we’ll be making a ￡1,000 donation to a charitable cause nominated by one of the YFM team.
Sabine Edwards, Managing Director of Pendleton Events who has worked with YFM for over six years, explains why she’s chosen to support Petals
Q??What is Petals?
Petals, the baby loss counselling charity, was founded in 2011 by Karen Burgess, Chief Executive.?Originally working as a counsellor within the NHS in Cambridge, Karen witnessed first-hand how critical her specialist counselling work was for bereaved parents. When the funding for her role was cut, she was determined to keep it going and formed Petals, which originally stood for Pregnancy Expectations Trauma and Loss Society.?Since achieving charity status in 2013, the service has grown to the size it is today, with aspirations to expand nationwide.
?Q??How have you been involved and why have you chosen to support the charity?
My partner and I felt the benefits of the services provided by Petals first hand when we received counselling after I had a hysterectomy having previously had 11 miscarriages. The sessions helped us to grieve and put us back together – I just don’t know where we would be without Petals’ support.
With one in four pregnancies ending in miscarriage, I believe we really need to bring the subject out of the shadows and talk openly about pregnancy loss – as a couple, we’re very vocal about our experience and it’s actually helped us to come to terms with our situation.
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Over the last six years, I’ve become a fundraiser for Petals, running a 10k and a half marathon for the charity; and I am an enthusiastic advocate for the vital services they provide.
Q??What will YFM’s donation be used for?
As the counselling provided by Petals is free, all donations are used to help cover the costs of these services.
?Karen Burgess, CEO & Founder of Petals:
“We receive requests for support on a daily basis at Petals, from parents who have suffered the unimaginable heartbreak of baby loss.?We have the expertise and reputation to meet this very specialist need, but funding it is our greatest challenge.?YFM’s very generous donation of ￡1,000 will enable us to support 14 couples who have yet to face this devastation – on behalf of them, and all of us at Petals, thank you so much.”
?More about Petals
Petals specialises in supporting parents who experience mental health issues as a result of bereavement, trauma or loss related to pregnancy including miscarriage, stillbirth, termination for medical reasons (TFMR) and neonatal loss.
Since the launch of the counselling service in Cambridge in 2013, thousands of individuals or couples have benefitted from it across 10 hospitals. It is now seeing 1,000 cases every year and provides 500 sessions every month.