It’s about so much more than money
Raised more than
£26,000
 Since then, her aunt, Jean Renwick from Cumbernauld, has raised
more than £26,000 for The Sunday Post CHAS fund through a series of sponsored walks with additional National Lottery sponsorship.
Jean says, “I really don’t think we would have coped without Rachel House.
“In fact my sister Rebecca still attends the forget-me-not group, a support group for bereaved families, and the chaplain for the hospice still comes to visit her.
“When Hannah passed away she was taken to Rachel House and I think it was so much more comforting for people to go to the hospice rather than visit Rebecca’s house.
“The staff at the hospice were a massive support because everyone deals with grief in a different way — and they seemed to know that. Whether you wanted to cry or scream there was a room in Rachel House where you could go.
“Throughout Hannah’s illness the hospice provided vital respite care and Rebecca could call them at any time. They were always there for her. That support has continued even until now — she’s expecting a baby, which is due on April 20.
“That was also Hannah’s birthday.
“Rebecca regularly receives calls from the Rachel House staff to see how she’s keeping physically, but also to see how she’s coping emotionally bringing another baby into world.
“We don’t know what we’d have done without the hospice. It sounds corny, but we really do want to give something back.”
The area manager for three pubs in Lanarkshire, Jean has organised a series of sponsored walks in the Campsies, with all money raised matched by the National Lottery.
Sit and cry
Involving staff and customers from Mollinsburn Inn in Cumbernauld, The Horseshoe Bar in Uddingston and Chapman’s Bar in Gartcosh, Jean donated
£9000 in August last year.
She’s in the planning stage for another walk this August and says that little Hannah’s memory and her time in Rachel House have changed her outlook on life.
“I think the whole experience has changed me. Things that were a big deal don’t seem to matter so much. It was a privilege to spend quality time with someone who’s so ill in the hospice, because they know just how valuable every moment is to you.
“You have your privacy, your own room and if it’s a bad day for the child you have the time and space to sit and cry with them if that’s what you want.
“My sister believes that although what happened to Hannah was very sad, there are those who are worse off.
“One woman in Rachel House lost one daughter on the Monday and the other on the Tuesday.
“That’s horrendous.”
Jean stressed why she believes it is so important that the nation continue its collective effort to raise vital funds for Scotland’s second children’s hospice.
“People in these terrible situations need the vital support that Hannah and our family received. That’s why campaigns like The Sunday Post Hospice Appeal are so important. That’s why we need a second hospice.”
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Treasured moments — Jean with her niece Hannah.
