Bereaved Mum Raises £2,100 For Sick Kids After Heartbreaking Loss

A bereaved mum has raised over £2,100 for our charity by taking on the Mallorca Ironman with her dad after her own heartbreaking loss.

Jade Hewitt, from Tamworth, completed a 1.2-mile sea swim, a 56-mile cycle and 13-mile run over the course of nine hours with her father, Jason Hewitt, right by her side, raising vital funds in memory of her unborn twin daughter, who sadly passed away.

Jade and her partner were elated when Jade became pregnant with twins. But they were both utterly grief-stricken when, very late in Jade’s pregnancy, doctors broke the devastating news that one of her twins, her baby girl, had tragically passed away.

Jade will never forget the immense pain of losing her daughter and is still utterly grateful to her family and partner for their support during that agonising time. Her baby twin son, Carter, is now five and is doing well, but Jade knows how easily things could have turned out differently.

Moved by heartfelt desire to do whatever she could to help poorly children and their families, Jade knew she wanted to support our Children’s Hospital. As a teaching assistant and behaviour lead for children with special educational needs and disabilities, she has seen the difference made by the world-class paediatric centre to the children she supports, and she was ready to push herself to the absolute limit for the cause.

Jade (left) and her dad Jason (right) raised over £2,100 for our hospital

Jade initially aimed to raise £300 for our Children’s Hospital, but was absolutely gobsmacked by how much the cause resonated with her friends and family. In the end, she was able to rack up an incredible fundraising total of over £2,100 for our sick kids.

It was tough for Jade to fit in the necessary training for an Ironman challenge with a busy work and parenting schedule, but she was determined to go the distance. Jade described the 70.2-mile endurance challenge as ‘utter carnage’, but as she finally crossed the finish line to the cheers of her partner and her two little boys, it all proved worth it.

Jade said: “It was really overwhelming to raise over £2,100 for the Children’s Hospital – I never thought so many people would donate, so I was really shocked and over the moon.

“Doing the Ironman Mallorca was an amazing, once in a lifetime experience. It was tough too, but the challenge was nothing compared to the pain of losing my daughter, and the difficulties faced by families of sick kids.”

Annie Eytle, Head of Public Fundraising, said: “The heartbreak Jade and her family went through losing their baby girl is unimaginable. We are deeply humbled by the way Jade has channelled her grief into supporting our hospital, pushing herself through this gruelling challenge with her dad by her side.

“Her determination and perseverance will help us go the distance for our patients, from delivering world-class care and treatments to funding cutting edge research and innovative equipment.”