President's Message

Posted: 15 April, 2013

The latest message from the The Compassionate Friends, Queensland's President outlining recent news and events.

April/May 2013

My Dear Fellow Compassionate Friends,

By the time you read this report Easter will be over for another year. How time flies. My heart goes ut to the parents who have faced their first Easter without their much beloved child. I know that we all try and put on a brave face for the sake of our family and sometimes it becomes so hard.

The second Sunday in May is the day we honour our mothers and for some it will be a bitter sweet day, for a child will not be there to wish them a happy Mother's Day and to tell them how much they are loved. Our beloved child, grandchild or other loved one may have died too soon but our love for them never des and our lives are enriched for having had them with us, even if only for a short time. May their blessings be felt by you on this special day.
I really enjoy (for the want of a better word) the support meetings and seeing our bereaved parents sharing their stories and gaining some solace fro one another, it makes it all worthwhile.

Our inaugural 'Walk to Remember' was held last Sunday 14 April in New Farm Park. It has been held for many years in other states so it was great to see so many people come along. The rain cleared and the sun came out for a wonderful morning of 'walking to remember', followed by a sausage sizzle. The highlight was the pipe band who were already at the park, and when asked, readily accepted our request to play Amazing Grace.

We have quite a few fundraising events coming up so if you can possibly help it lightens the load for the few who do it all the time. The Ipswich Show is on the 17th, 18th and 19th of May and we need volunteers to help, so if you have some time to spare please let Joy at the Drop In Centre know. We are having our Golf Day again in July so if you play golf or know of others who play golf it is a great day as well as raising much needed funds for our association.

In closing I would like to share a quote with you, "There are studies that show regular hugs not only increase feelings of contentedness in life, but actually assist in improving health -for both givers and receivers. There is no shortage of people who would like a hug."

Much love to you all and God bless,
Vera, mother of Andrew.