THE Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice is delighted with the success of its new ‘Every Precious Life’ appeal which aimed to raise £400,000 in just 60 hours.
Donations made within the 60-hour appeal window, which started at 10am on Sunday, 23rd November and finished at 10pm on Tuesday, 25th November, were doubled thanks to a match-fund pot the charity has put together. As the Glamorgan Star went to press for the 26th November edition, the appeal had raised more than £430,000 – and donations are still being accepted.
Tŷ Hafan’s “Every Precious Life Appeal” looked at stories of families who have experienced baby loss and who are being supported by Tŷ Hafan.
Emrys Arthur was just eight days old when he passed away on 14th March 2024 after he was born prematurely at 25 weeks on 6th March 2024.
His parents, Gwenno George and Luke Nicholas, who live in Cardiff, were supported by Tŷ Hafan to be able to drive their beloved baby son’s body back to Gwenno’s home town, Criccieth, in north Wales, where he was buried alongside other members of Gwenno’s family.
“We had eight days with Emrys,” said Gwenno. “It’ll never be enough but we were lucky to have those precious days.”
Gwenno, finance director for Acuity Law, and Luke, who works for the Welsh Local Government Association, have also received counselling via Tŷ Hafan and benefit from ongoing bereavement support.
She said: “I feel really lucky that we have this additional support, this additional family, in Tŷ Hafan. I find it difficult to think about families or couples who are having to go through what we’ve gone through without the support of Tŷ Hafan.”
They were inspired to do their own fundraising walk and on the final leg (from Cardiff to Tŷ Hafan on Sunday) their arrival at the Sully hospice was greeted with a perfect rainbow!
Throughout the month of November, with friends and family, they covered a total of 165 miles, the distance from their home in Cardiff to Criccieth.
For bereaved parents Gwenno George and Luke Nicholas the stunning rainbow that appeared on the final leg of their fundraising journey in aid of Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice yesterday (Sunday) meant far more than any pot of money ever could.
The couple’s walk from Cardiff’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) to Tŷ Hafan was the final stretch of a series of fundraising walks they have undertaken along with friends and family throughout the month of November covering a total of 165 miles, the distance from their home in Cardiff to Gwenno’s home town of Criccieth in North Wales.
Gwenno said: “Altogether we covered a total distance of 20km today. It was a really special journey that meant so much to us. We chatted about Emrys along the way, and at one point a perfect rainbow appeared, a symbol that we very closely associate with Emrys. I will hold that moment, and the journey, very closely in my heart for a long time.”
Dan Bamsey, head of fundraising for Tŷ Hafan, said: “We chose to focus on our work with very young babies as this as an area where demand for our services has almost doubled.
“The number of babies aged 28 days old and under referred to us in 2023/2024 was 21, and in 2024/2025 it was 39. And in the first six months of this year we’ve already had 22 referrals.
“So, this Christmas we aimed to raise £400,000 in just 60 hours to support more families of children with life-shortening conditions.”
Although the deadline has passed, donations can still be made here.
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