A staff member of a funeral directors in Winchester has won an award after helping a family reeling from the loss of a loved one.

Evie Thomas-Broomfield, a funeral director with Richard Steel & Partners, was nominated by one of the families she looked after at the Mariposa Trust Awards, held in London at the Landmark Hotel.

Evie won the community awards at the ceremony, as a testament to helping the family of baby Everley.

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Everley's mum and dad, Rachel and Craig, nominated Evie after losing their child. Evie helped to plan every part of Everley's funeral, arranging songs, flowers, and the order of service. On top of this, she accommodated the family to spend some time with Everley before the funeral, giving the parents and their daughter, Scarlett, the opportunity to say goodbye in their own way.

Rachel said: "Evie made us feel like Everley was safe and looked after. She made her funeral perfect and just how we wanted and she looked after us all, making sure my family had a chance to say goodbye in a beautiful way in really awful circumstances.

Hampshire Chronicle: The award ceremony was held at the Landmark Hotel, LondonThe award ceremony was held at the Landmark Hotel, London (Image: Richard Steel & Partners, Canva)

"When a baby dies before they are born, your time and memories are so few these little things make a huge difference, as they become all you have.

"But the biggest thing she did, she sat with us comfortably in our darkest time and was so present. I knew she was doing everything she could for us all and she made this time so much easier.

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"Thank you Evie. I'm so pleased everyone knows how amazing you are and the impact your work can have on a family."

Director at Steels, Alison Hixon, said: “At Steels, we have established a bereavement support service for the families that we serve, and this is a fantastic example of the lengths that our teams will go to to guide and comfort grieving families when they need it most.

“Evie in particular has demonstrated the emotional as well as practical support needed to be there for families who have so sadly lost a baby or young child, and she greatly deserves the recognition that this award brings which she received in loving memory of Everley. 

"We are very grateful to Rachel and Craig for their kind and thoughtful nomination”.

The Mariposa Trust is a charity that is all too aware of the pain and trauma of loss, whether that be during pregnancy, at birth or in infancy.

The charity also supports anyone who is grieving the fact that they have not been able to have children, for whatever reason that may be.

More information on the Mariposa Trust Awards can be found at sayinggoodbye.org/mariposa-awards-results-2024.