We Honoured the Life of Grace Millane in One of Our Events for the 16 Days.
Grace Millane was tragically murdered whilst travelling in New Zealand in December 2018. Her mother was determined to make Grace’s life more impactful than her death.
In Grace’s name, her mother, Gillian launched the “Love Grace” appeal – collecting and filling handbags with essentials for women in need.
And that’s exactly what we did!
And that’s exactly what we did!In just over an hour, we filled 54 good quality, smart handbags with toiletries, cosmetics, purses, scarves and jewellery. We’d already raised money to buy brand new items by taking part in a car boot sale a month earlier and members donated small luxuries to add to the handbags.
Once the bags were filled, we added a note from us.
The Birmingham based charity Anawim provides support for women in need and 45 of the filled handbags went straight to them. Nine of the bags went to women newly arrived at our local women’s refuge. At intensely challenging and difficult times, a gift like this can make a real difference. One of the testimonials published in *The Guardian‘s report on the ‘Love Grace’ appeal comes from the chief executive of a domestic abuse charity:
“When we give them to the women, it’s quite an emotional process. Just that little bit of luxury changes their day and makes them feel they are valued. A number of women have even taken the “Love Grace” tags to difficult court or police appointments. Just kind of holding it in their pockets, it’s making them feel valued, that somebody is there, almost rooting for them.”
You can find out more about the “Love Grace” appeal here
And more about the Birmingham based women’s support charity “Anawim” here
You can access Warwickshire Refuges here
https://refuge.org.uk/i-need-help-now/refuge-domestic-violence-service-warwickshire/
*The Guardian 22 Nov 2019