NSW Women of the Year Awards

Yesterday, on Friday 1st March I went to Nepean Hospital and stood in a room very close to the room where Ava was born. This room is being set up for bereaved parents by the wonderful midwives and staff who work on the antenatal ward. I feel that Nepean Hospital are leading the way in bereavement care in NSW and are a model that many other hospitals can learn from. The staff that work there and care for families are amazing.
My good friend Natasha who is a bereaved mother of Elijah and four gorgeous boys at home came with me and it was so special to have her with me as Natasha has been a dedicated volunteer for Ava Grace No Footprint Too Small. She is very talented and is able to knit, crochet and sew the small baby items we donate to Nepean and hospitals around the country. My husband Mat was there to support me along with Jesse our rainbow baby who is now 21 months old. My friend Meagan was there and Shirley who is the wonderful midwife who gratefully accepts our donations to the ward along with Alisha who provides bereavement care.

I was invited to the hospital and Antenatal Ward as I was being presented the Mulgoa 2019 Local Woman of the Year Award by the Hon. Tanya Davies MP Member for Mulgoa, NSW Minister for Women. It was lovely to speak with her and tell her some of Ava's story and what we are doing at Ava Grace No Footprint Too Small.


It was a humbling experience and such an honour being presented the award for my work with Ava Grace No Footprint Too Small. I started the volunteer group soon after Ava was born as a way of giving back and working through my grief. I was sitting at a sewing machine trying my best to sew simple blankets and nappies for other parents who would walk the same path that we were now walking. I treasured the items that amazing charities and volunteers had given to Nepean Hospital to pass on to us so that our daughter would have something to wear and something that we could hold in our hands when she was gone. I have so many wonderful volunteers who work with me to provide these clothes and items to hospitals and this award is as much for them as it is for me with all the hours they spend and money they spend on materials and yarn. I handed over a box of recently made items comprising of blankets, teddy bears and clothing packages.

In just 2 weeks it will be Ava's 4th Birthday on the 16th March. I am coping much better this year and thankfully I haven't suffered from the crippling flashbacks that I experienced in the lead up to Ava's 3rd Birthday last year. I still grieve everyday for the "what if" and "should have been" but I am truly learning to walk beside my grief and not have it consume me like it did in the early days when it was so raw and physically painful. I am able to think of her with a smile on my face and everything she has brought to my life, even though some days the tears fall.

This coming Thursday 7th March I will be attending the NSW Women of the Year Awards. I am looking forward to hearing and meeting inspirational women who are making a difference in their communities. Thankyou to each and every volunteer and supporter of Ava Grace No Footprint Too Small.