“Forget Me Not has had such an impact on us and all the family”

“When Gabriel passed away, the fact that we could come here, be welcomed with open arms and get the support we needed, whenever we needed it, was brilliant. It was the first time we’d seen or heard about anything like this existing – and, to be honest, it blew us away. The snowflake suite, where we were able to spend time with Gabriel, was like being in a 5 star hotel. And the staff at Forget Me Not put so much thought into everything – we had a box with his hair in it, candles, a balloon we could release in his memory. And it wasn’t just us, his parents, our whole family were supported by the hospice. 

Many people won’t want to come to a place like this. Because it feels like you’re rubbing salt in the wound. That’s what I thought, in all honesty, after everything we’d been through. But when I got here, it was the opposite – it made me feel a lot better. 

That’s why we wanted to give something back. So we just put our story out there, we created a just giving page and put it on social media. And other family members did the same. People started donating and it just spread. It’s a great way to fundraise too – because it’s so easy for people to donate. Even a relative in Australia got involved! 

And we did the Colour Run too. Most of the family took part, old and young, from my nephew to his great-grandma – who’s 84, by the way! And we’ve bought a block in Forget Me Not’s celebration wall, to commemorate Gabriel’s memory. 

We didn’t know about the hospice until we had to go through the worst circumstances possible, but Forget Me Not has had such an impact on us and all the family. That’s why we’re going to do lots more fundraising – we’ll be at the Colour Run again next year and Callum’s planning on running a marathon. And why we wanted to tell our story. Because more people should know about Forget Me Not!”  

Natalie and Callum.