A family from Ballynahinch recently laced up their running shoes to pound the pavements during the Belfast Marathon to raise over £3,000 for the Ulster Hospital’s Forget Me Not Bereaved Focus Group.
Motivated by the painful loss of their twin boys Alexander and Gabriel in 2021, Barrie Bogues together with his brother Paul and friend Mark McCormick took on the 26.2 mile challenge to help ensure that other families facing similar heartbreak receive the care, compassion and support they need.
Barrie’s wife Samantha shared how proud she was of all the effort the running trio put into the day and how the Bogues family wanted to, “Give back to the Forget Me Not Group as they were brilliant to us when we lost our twin boys.”
“The Bereavement Midwives, Susan Stitt and Jacqueline Dorrian, were brilliant to us and showed such kindness to myself and Barrie. Susan delivered the boys and was so lovely throughout. When I found out I was pregnant with my daughter, I contacted Susan to tell her and she was so helpful in terms of arranging early scans for me which was really reassuring,” said Samantha.
Samantha described how the Bogues family attend the annual Forget Me Not fun days as a way to connect with other families who have experienced the pain and loss of losing their baby before or after birth.
Samantha added how proud she and the family were to watch Barrie, Paul and Mark cross the finish line on race day. “We were all so proud and happy that we were able to raise £3,650 for the Forget Me Not Group.”
Ulster Hospital’s Forget Me Not Bereavement Midwives Susan Stitt and Jacqueline Dorrian thanked the Bogues family for their very kind donation towards the group and said “We are very grateful to receive this generous amount which will go towards helping bereaved families. We really appreciate the effort that Barrie, Paul and Mark went to in completing the Belfast Marathon and to everyone who contributed, thank you all.”