Losing my mum, my mentor, my best friend, the person who made me who I am, has hit my inner self with such a hard hitting blow, I barely know how to walk through life without her by my side. My thoughts are often low, incredibly sad, without a purpose, despite having my own wonderful family. That is the effect of grief – and our whole world is full of it.

I am a self-motivated person, and I know that the best strategy to manage grief is to focus on a positive part of life. To me, this is Hampers for Heroes. The group gave me the opportunity to retrain my thoughts and to process all the grief, to battle with the sad thoughts and have a new purpose.

Some days I still wake up, visualise my mum, and yes the tears still come, and I hope they always will. But being part of the beautiful team that is Hampers for Heroes helps me to manage my mental health every day. Sometimes you can’t quantify or qualify or even put into words what something means to you. It’s just a state of being there. In being part of this team, I have got through the very worst experience of my life. And that, is how much it means.

Annie Sheppard

Thank you Victoria Hanson and all the team at Hampers for Heroes. Your kindness and generosity goes further than you think in uplifting spirit of all hardworking NHS staff! A big cheer to you all!!

Consultantat Birmingham Children’s Hospital

Catering at Solihull would like to thank you for our lovely hamper yesterday. It the first thing we have had during this outbreak. We really appreciate it and all enjoyed it.

Catering Staff Memberat Solihull Hospital