Together, We’re Bringing Comfort to Families Who Need It Most

Our Mission

When I created Blue Bear & Co, I never imagined how many people would choose to stand beside us on this journey.

What started as a way to honour our son Charlie and create something meaningful from unimaginable heartbreak has grown into a mission supported by businesses, healthcare professionals, fundraisers, friends and complete strangers who simply want to make a difference.

Every Blue Bear & Co. Brown Bear is created with comfort, connection and memories at its heart. Whether holding a loved one’s voice, scent, heartbeat or treasured keepsake, each bear becomes so much more than a teddy bear. It becomes something to hold onto when words simply aren’t enough.

Today, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on what we have achieved together.

The Impact So Far

Thanks to the incredible generosity of our supporters, more than 100 comfort bears have been funded and gifted to families facing some of life’s most difficult moments.

Those bears have reached bereavement services, children’s hospices and support organisations across the UK, including:

• Derian House Children’s Hospice – 28 bears

• East Lancashire Hospice – 32 bears

• Acorns Children’s Hospice – 6 bears

• Claire House Children’s Hospice – 6 bears

• The Alder Centre at Alder Hey – 6 bears

• Sibling Support – 5 bears

• St John’s Hospice – 6 bears

• St Catherine’s Hospice – 6 bears

• Thumbs Up for Charlie – 60 bears

One particularly special story came from East Lancashire Hospice, where nurse Elaine was so touched by the impact of the bears that she organised her own fundraiser, raising enough money to provide a further 25 bears for families receiving bereavement support.

Every bear represents a family, a story, a memory and a reminder that they are not alone.

Businesses Making a Difference

 None of this would be possible without the businesses who have chosen to support our Sponsor A Bear mission.

The Elsie Davis Trust has funded 25 bears, enabling Thumbs Up For Charlie to gift comfort bears to families who need them most.

PM+M Solutions have funded 10 bears.

Anti-Ageing Aesthetics in Garstang sponsor two bears every month.

Shift It sponsor one bear every month.

JSBerry Contractors have funded five bears.

Harrison Engineering have funded six bears.

Sharoe Green Dental Practice funded six bears through Kate Holden’s Manchester Half Marathon fundraiser.

We have also received support from The Untypical OT, The Old Rock Gift Shop, Stell and a growing number of individual sponsors.

Alongside this, my own skydive fundraiser helped provide a further 21 bears to families who needed comfort and connection during incredibly difficult times.

Why People Choose to Support Blue Bear & Co. 

One of the most humbling parts of this journey has been hearing why people choose to get involved.

Sarah Murphy from Anti-Ageing Aesthetics shared: 

“My decision to support Blue Bear & Co wasn’t a business decision. It was a decision from the heart.”

Having worked as a children’s nurse and spent time supporting families through some of the most difficult moments imaginable, Sarah understands just how important memories become when words are no longer enough.

Andy Graham from Shift It explained:

“Nothing can take away the pain or heartbreak, but we hope the Sponsor A Bear mission provides some small comfort.”

At Harrison Engineering, the team were inspired by the simple but powerful impact a bear can have.

“The idea of providing something as simple as a bear to bring comfort during incredibly difficult moments really resonated with us.”

Kate Holden chose to run the Manchester Half Marathon on behalf of Sharoe Green Dental Practice to raise funds for Blue Bear & Co. after being inspired by Charlie’s story and the mission behind the bears.

She said:

“To turn such a difficult time into something so positive for others is incredible.”

Individual sponsor Lynton Connolly first heard about Blue Bear & Co. through his daughter Heather. 

His reason for supporting our mission was beautifully simple:

“It makes me happy knowing I can help people who are going through the worst time of their lives.”

These words mean more than I can ever explain because they remind me that this mission isn’t mine alone anymore.

It belongs to a community of people who care.

Looking Ahead

Every bear gifted represents love.

 A parent’s love.

 A grandparent’s love.

A sibling’s love.

A love that continues long after someone has gone.

While nothing can ever take away grief, our hope is that these bears provide comfort, connection and a tangible reminder that precious memories live on.

Thank You

To every business, fundraiser, supporter and sponsor who has helped us reach this point, thank you.

You are helping families feel seen, supported and remembered during some of the darkest moments of their lives.

Together, we are ensuring that no family feels alone.

If you would like to become a Sponsor A Bear Partner and help us place bears into the hands of families who need them most, we would love to hear from you

Together, we can continue creating moments of comfort, one bear at a time.

Sent with Love,

Nici

Founder of Blue Bear & Co.

Co Founder of Thumbs Up for Charlie