Aching Arms

I am really happy to tell you about our latest fundraising effort - well, I say our, but really it is all down to a friend Mike who is taking part in the Great North Swim in June and asked if he could use it to raise money for Erin's Gift. Of course I said yes without hesitation and knew immediately which charity I wanted him to swim for - Aching Arms.

I have written about Aching Arms at length in a post before. They are a wonderful charity set up by the lovely Leanne following the loss of her son James. They aim to bring hope and comfort to bereaved mothers' aching arms by giving them a teddy bear to hold. Each bear is given in memory of another precious baby's life lost too soon and is a gift from one mother to another. I was given a beautiful bear in memory of baby Maisie and each and every night I fall to sleep holding Maisie bear tightly in my arms.

My previous post about how much Maisie bear and the work that Aching Arms do can be found here http://erinsgift.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/today-i-got-received-some-comfort.html

I really hope Mike is able to raise lots of money through sponsorship for his swim. For each £10 that is donated another bear in memory of Erin will be given to a mother needing comfort. Of course, the bear will never replace the precious baby that has been lost, but that is not the aim. The bear will be something for the mother to squeeze tight and hold as she cries and thinks about her dearly loved and much wanted baby who is no longer in her arms. It will remind her that she is not alone...that somewhere out there, there is another mother who has experienced similar loss and who has given this bear to her with the greatest love she has....the love for her most precious child.

Please take a look at Mike's fundraising page and donate/share it if you can http://www.justgiving.com/MikeESwim. You can also sponsor him by texting ERIN62 followed by £1, £2, £3, £4, £5, £6, £7, £8, £9 or £10 to 70070. Thank you.

"While I sleep, I dream of you, and when I wake,

I long to hold you in my arms"