Highland Ambassador for SiMBA

My family is truly blessed ~ Andrew and I have 2 daughters Charis & Niamh. 

But we have also experienced the depths of grief, having lost 2 babies. In July 2007, I miscarried Alex at 13 weeks ~ we grieved, had her name recorded in the memorial book in Raigmore Hospital, attended a memorial service for lost babies, and then got on with busy family life, as we missed her dreadfully.

On the 24th September 2010, our family was devastated when I gave birth to our stillborn daughter Eilidh Beth. She was 1 day away from 34 weeks gestation and had succumbed to non-immune hydrops fetalis. We were so fortunate to have an amazing midwife, Donna MacLeod, who accompanied me into theatre, held my hand, cried with me then cared for Eilidh Beth when she was delivered. Donna, took her hand and foot prints, and brought her to me when I came around from the anesthetic.

Throughout the day we had so much support from the midwives who made sure that my husband, parents & I had peace to spend time with Eilidh Beth. They arranged for medical illustrations to take some photos ~ we treasure those 3 photos as they are the only ones, regrettably, that we have of our daughter. They helped us lease with the chaplaincy to arrange the funeral service. And they took incredible care of me in the following days as I recovered.

It was only a couple of weeks after Eilidh Beth’s funeral that we decided that we wanted to set up some kind of support in the Highlands. Eilidh Beth had spent the day wrapped in towels, and that saddened me. My Mum bought her a wee teddy to go with her to the funeral home, and a gorgeous wee outfit, and our daughters did drawings & both put a wee toy in her casket. We gathered some family photos and they went in too.

I bought a Memory Box from a supplier in England, and that is when I decided that we should try to provide Memory Boxes to Raigmore Hospital. It was at this time, as I was trying to figure out how logistically I was going to raise enough funds to get this done quickly. It was then that Sara from SiMBA, Simpson’s Memory Box Appeal, connected with me. 
When she asked if I wanted to do this in association with SiMBA, I was overjoyed! What an answer to prayer!

We set up a meeting with Raigmore Hospital’s Ward 10, and within the first few weeks of 2011 weeks the first set of boxes had been sent. They didn’t want a family room refurbished, but the chaplain inquired if the Chapel Quiet Room, which we used regularly (and still do!), could be refurbished. That was duly done and it is transformed.

2011 also saw the setting up of the Inverness Support Group which provides a safe haven for anyone affected by the loss of a baby ~ parents, grandparents, older siblings, extended family and friends.

In July 2012 SiMBA’S third Tree of Tranquillity was given a home in the grounds of Floral Hall in Inverness. The Tree gives parents and their families a place to visit and remember their baby in beautiful, peaceful surroundings. 

SiMBA works tirelessly throughout the UK, Channel Isles and Gibraltar. I have such a vision for reaching bereaved parents throughout the Highlands of Scotland, which is the largest and most sparsely populated part of the UK. As with the whole of the UK, in the Highlands SiMBA aims ~

• to provide a continued supply of the precious Memory Boxes & Blankets of Love to Maternity Units throughout the region

• to raise awareness of miscarriage, stillbirth and neonatal death through media, talks, & mail shots

• to offer support, understanding and empathy to families who have experienced baby loss, through online support, one-to-one visits & monthly support groups

• to raise funds for SiMBA, Simpson’s Memory Box Appeal

• to provide Family Rooms within maternity units, to give parents the opportunity to spend further precious time with and prepare to say goodbye to their baby in peaceful and private accommodation
• to plant Trees of Tranquility where parents can spend peaceful, reflective time remembering their wee ones
• to establish Support Groups for any 

NHS Highland comprises the largest and most sparsely populated part of the UK, with a mountainous terrain, rugged coastline and populated islands. The area covers 33,028km², around 41% of Scotland. NHS Highland serves a population of over 310,000 residents.
In 2008 there were 60,000 births in Scotland

• The overall Scottish stillbirth rate was 5.4 per 1000 births (which equates to 324 stillbirths),

• the perinatal mortality rate 7.4 per 1000 live births (which equates to 444 perinatal deaths)

• The neonatal mortality rate 2.8 per 1000 live births (which equates to 168 neonatal deaths).

These figures do not include babies lost before 24 weeks gestation. Every single day in Scotland alone countless families are going through the heart ache of having to say goodbye to their much love and wanted babies. SiMBA is here to respond to the needs of those families and honour babies lost to us.

I am delighted and honoured to be working as Highland Ambassador with SiMBA (Simpson’s Memory Box Appeal), and can be contacted

•         By phone: 07771358382 / 01631 720107

•         By email: simbahighland@gmail.com

•         on Facebook: www.facebook.com/Citril1

Not a day goes by where I do not miss Alex & Eilidh Beth, or feel like our family is incomplete, but to be able to do this work in honour of their memory is truly a God send!