TCF President, Patrons and Trustees

 

TCF President

Countess Mountbatten

Countess Mountbatten was in a boat which was blown up by the IRA off the shores of Sligo in 1979, killing her fourteen-year-old son Nicholas, her father, her mother-in-law and fifteen-year-old Paul Maxwell, a boat-boy from County Fermanagh. She, her husband, and their son Timothy Knatchbull (Siblings patron) were injured but survived the attack.

 

 

TCF Patrons

Baroness Susan Miller

Sue Miller was born in Hampshire in 1954 and went to a Quaker school in Somerset.  She has lived in Somerset most

of her life working in publishing, bookselling and becoming involved in local politics. She was elected in 1987 to her local council where her radical reforming leadership led to her nomination to the House of Lords in 1998.  In her time in the Lords she has been spokesperson on the Environment and Rural Affairs (1999-2007) and Home Affairs (2007-2010).

Her elder daughter Charlotte died in 2001 due to the negligence of an electricity company in Ecuador. She has founded a charity in her memory    www.cmap.org.uk

When not in Parliament she helps her husband on their vineyard.

 

Dr Ann Dent

 

As one of the first Macmillan community nurses, Ann was involved in the setting up and running of St. Peter’s Hospice in Bristol. She has worked to achieve community care for dying children and their families in the South West Region.
More recently she has conducted research into support for families after sudden child death at the Department of Health in Bristol University, giving papers nationally and internationally on her work.

Over the years she has been involved in initiating and running two branches of Cruse. For four years she was chair of the consultant panel of the Child Bereavement                                            Network.

Paul Flynn MP

Paul Flynn has kindly allowed us to reprint a chapter of his recent book 'The Unusual Suspect' in which he talks with devastating honesty about the loss of his daughter Rachel.

http://db.tt/SCXI1UH

 

 

 

 

TCF Siblings Patrons

Hon. Timothy Knatchbull

Ruthie Henshall

 

 

 

 

 

 

TCF Chairperson & Vice Chairperson

 

Rebecca Fitzsimons

Rebecca lives near Kettering in Northamptonshire with her husband Steve and her two cats! Rebecca lost her only sister Naomi in 1990 in a car accident when Naomi was 14 and Rebecca 17 years old. Her involvement with TCF initially came about through her parents as her mum is a County Contact & her dad a Regional Coordinator for TCF. For a number of years Rebecca wanted to support TCF but didn’t know how best to do this until by chance she heard about a scheme which would sponsor her to work for TCF for 2 months, which she did in April/May 2011. As a result of this placement Rebecca took the opportunity to become involved with TCF as a trustee where she hopes to utilise her training and business skills learnt from her background in Supply Chain Management, Training & Development. Her spare time is spent baking, cooking, walking and spending time with friends & family.

 

Patrick Roberts

Patrick lost his 21 year old son Sam in 2007. Patrick has spent his life working in the publishing and printing industry. He is a CAB adviser specialising in employment matters, and has served as a trustee on many charities. Untill Sam's death he was very involved in local community affairs and has been Mayor in his Suffolk hometown.

He spent over 40 years treading the boards and directing in local amateur dramatic groups, his other interests include history, reading and cricket.

His wife Gil is the TCF librarian and they both enjoy time

spent with their surviving daughter and grandchildren.

 

TCF Trustees

 

Shushma Jain (SIBBS)

I lost my younger brother Arvind in August 2009 aged 13. He had Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy but due to a world famous children's hospital’s negligence his life was cut short and he died suddenly due to this.

I have another brother Nitin who is a year older than me and we live together in London with my parents where we have lived all my life.

In Arvind's memory, and to repay the help my mum and I received from TCF I decided I wanted to help develop the siblings aspect more, I am now a sibling contact and run a siblings group in London too.

I also work for the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign and a children's hospice, as well as working full-time at a special needs school.

 

Richard Challinor

 

Mark Ferland

Mark has been a member of TCF since 1989 following his son Simon's death in the May. Although now retired from the posts Mark has been County Contact for Herts, Local Contact for Saffron Walden area and a member of the Helpline Team for many years.

His interests include Music (organist), Reading and Civil Aviation. He is totally committed to the ethos and support offered by The Compassionate Friends.

 

Susan Hughes

 

Anita Murray

Anita Murray is from Co. Tyrone in Northern Ireland. She is married to Wingfield and has two married daughters, a son and two grandsons.
Anita became involved in TCF after the sudden death of her only son William aged 15 on Christmas Eve 1997 as the result of a freak accident.
In the past she has owned her own taxi business and was one of the drivers in the company and was on the samaritan helpline team. After William's death she became a registered childminder and helped out on her husband's dairy and beef farm. Since 2006 she became more involved in voluntary work, most of which is within The Compassionate Friends. At present she is Regional Co-ordinator in Northern Ireland, facilitates a support group and is on the helpline team there. Anita became a Trustee in 2010.
Her pastimes are walking, and spending quality time with her family.

 

Shaun Hewitt

I lost my only child Oliver early in 2006 aged 23 in his sleep.

I am a self employed decorator tending towards retirement.

I had never been a trustee, or even been on a committee before I joined TCF in an 'official' capasity, and although having absolutely no knowledge of finance, or the intricacies of charity workings, I do feel I've found a niche and am serving a useful purpose, something that is often difficult when as a 'childless parent' you can feel your useful role in the world has gone.

(If you have ever thought of volunteering to be a trustee, don’t let the fact that you have never done it before, or the feeling that you do not have the right experience stop you, we ALL have something to give).

My main pastimes are my partner Paul, Gracie Fields, gardening, reading Victorian lady novelists and being part of the team that looks after the TCF Forum.

 

Chief Executive

Diana Youdale