Growing up Grieving
Help children find hope during their most difficult times
Support our Radio 4 Appeal and help us reach our £20,000 target!
We are just £3,000 shy of reaching our target thanks to generous donations from supporters. Will you help us reach our £20,000 target so we can support more people who are growing up grieving.
On Mother’s Day – Sunday 30th March, Dominic, Winston’s Wish volunteer shared the story of 13-year-old Oliver during our BBC Radio 4 Appeal. Oliver’s mum died when he was just 8 and he is now learning how to cope with his grief. Today, we’re asking you to help make a difference to the lives of children growing up grieving by making a donation.
£30 could provide one hour with a Bereavement Support Worker for a child like Oliver – offering them a safe place to talk, process their emotions, and begin the healing journey.
The grief they experience can be overwhelming, and without support, it can shape their entire lives. By donating today, you are helping children find hope during their most difficult times.
Listen to Dominic’s debut on BBC Radio 4 below.
Meet Dominic
“As a volunteer on the Winston’s Wish bereavement help and support line, I witness the powerful impact our work has on children and young people who are coping with the death of a loved one.
“Every day, I speak with children like Oliver, whose world has been turned upside down by grief. I know all too well the pain Oliver feels and the need to talk to someone, it’s what I needed when I lost my older brother Paul, I was only nine when he died. I look back now and realise how lonely I was as a child and how the unprocessed grief deeply affected me right into adulthood.
That’s why I volunteer today, and why your incredible support means so much.“
Growing up Grieving: Oliver’s story
Oliver was only 8 years old when his mum, Sophie, died to cancer. She was his world, and their time together was filled with laughter. Every time Oliver hears ABBA’s ‘Dancing Queen’ he is reminded of dancing around the kitchen with his mum. They’d laugh, record silly videos, and playfully compete, telling each other, “I love you more!” It’s one of Oliver’s most treasured memories—a memory that never fails to make him smile.
These memories bring him comfort, but they are also all he has left. Tears come to his eyes, he knows he won’t be able to make any new memories with his mum and he worries he’ll start to forget her.
Despite the pain, Oliver is learning to cope with his grief. He now has support through Winston’s Wish, where a Bereavement Support Worker has given him a safe space to speak openly about his feelings, find ways to cope, and plan for the most difficult days.
Winston’s Wish is there for Oliver, and for children and young people like him, as they grow up. And it’s because of supporters like you that this work is possible.
Will you donate today to support children growing up grieving?
A donation of £30 will fund one hour of vital support with a Bereavement Support Worker for a child like Oliver – offering them a safe place to talk, process their emotions, and begin the healing journey.
The grief they experience can be overwhelming, and without support, it can shape their entire lives. By donating today, you are helping children find hope during their most difficult times.
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