As part of Surefire and Soltherm, our staff members Mark, Jack, Andrew and Martynas are doing a 10k Run to raise funds for Aching Arms on 25th June 2023.

Surefire Management Services and Soltherm External Wall Insulations hold charitable giving as a hallmark value of credibility and the cornerstone of Surefire’s dedication to having a positive impact on communities through the services we deliver. As a result, we recently undertook a companywide staff survey to ascertain which charity spoke to our staff and would benefit most from charitable donations and support. Following this survey it was concluded that we would donate to Aching Arms, our valued Employee, Colleague and friend Samantha Amphlett has personally felt the impact of the great work Aching Arms provides to bereaved parents.

In her own words, Samantha describes how Aching Arms has supported her:

'I’m Samantha Amphlett. I lost my son in July 2022, I was 34 weeks pregnant, and I suffered a medical emergency which led to my son dying, I’m a bereaved parent.

I was in hospital and had just come out of surgery and this bear was placed at the of my bed, and I didn’t realise but the whole time I was in hospital I held onto that bear, and even when I was holding my son I had the bear there, it was something my son had then touched, that I could then take home with me because it was something he was connected to himself.

It’s something very important, and something that is very close to home. When you lose a child, it’s like having the wind knocked out of you, you are at a loss, you don’t know where to turn, the world is spinning and you’re standing still.

So it’s having something tangible to hold, to feel, to touch, and to know that you’re not alone, and a sign of hope that people come out in another light, and you connect to families in ways you never realised you would, through the Facebook sites, through a support network, and it’s like you’re part of a group you never thought you’d be part of and are supporting each other.

It’s raising awareness and raising the channels of support out there for families who need it, it’s raising the profile of the charity, you never know charities exist until you need them, so it’s knowing there are certain things out there to support you. And it may be someone knowing someone else who wants to donate a bear, or provide that gift of comfort, the support of it, it’s the community side of it as well.

For me personally, I think it’s a charity that provides comfort for those in their darkest time. When you’ve just lost a baby or a pregnancy, it is not just the loss you’re facing. You’re not just losing your child you’re losing your future; you’re losing all the stuff that you’ve got planned.

So, what this charity does, it gives you something tangible to hold, because the term aching arms, you come home, you never expect to leave the hospital without your baby, so you come home and you’ve got something you can hold, something you can feel, something you can touch, and something that provides comfort to those in their darkest time.

Good luck to our colleagues Mark, Jack, Martynas and Andrew taking part! We are all behind you.