There are many dedicated staff, volunteers, and supporters behind the work of Red Nose. This is Catherine’s story.
When a bereaved parent calls Red Nose’s Bereavement Support Line, I’m one of the comforting voices that parents speak with to help them through their bereavement journey.
I’ve been a volunteer with Red Nose since March 2023 and over the past year it’s been wonderful to give back to others, holding a space for people to feel less alone when experiencing grief and loss.
Bereavement support and the work Red Nose do is something that I wish I’d known and been more aware of when I experienced my pregnancy losses in 2017. One of these was a Termination for Medical Reasons (TFMR), at 13 weeks gestation. This was an extremely hard time for my partner and me – the grief being all-consuming. A time where, if not for the support of family and close friends, our recovery would have looked very different.
When I went through TFMR, the unhelpful words and comments said inadvertently by a healthcare professional, while being given the diagnosis, will never be forgotten.
“There is something significantly wrong with your baby.”
“Have you done anything to harm this pregnancy?”
“Have you had excessive drink or drug use?”
While the words are less painful now, they will always be there.
My partner and I are blessed to now have two beautiful girls. Had we been more aware of Red Nose back in 2017, I feel our experience through this time would have looked somewhat different.
Volunteering with Red Nose has given me a sense of healing and purpose – helping others who have had a similar experience to understand that they are not alone and helping to ensure that parents get the early access to quality bereavement care and support throughout their grieving process.
“A big part of healing is having our grief and love witnessed – validation that our baby’s life mattered.”
Prior to joining as volunteer, my background for over 12 years was in Early Childhood Education and Care. Through this work I became aware of the amazing work Red Nose was doing for families, primarily their safe sleeping practices.
I now have my own baby sleep consultancy business, Completely Baby, and I’ve carried across Red Nose’s Safe Sleep messages and have integrated the ethos in relation to safe sleeping and safer pregnancy into my approach with families I work with.
Volunteering with Red Nose’s incredible Bereavement team, who have provided me with such valuable mentorship, are a constant inspiration! They’ve helped nourish my own soul and I feel so grateful to be part of the Red Nose family. They are a community that has welcomed me from the beginning and who continue to inspire me. I look forward to making a difference.
Together we can work towards better outcomes for people experiencing grief and loss and in turn reduce the stigmas associated with miscarriage and TFMR.
What’s next for Catherine?
I’m passionate about helping families provide the best possible support and care for their children. As a practitioner in the early parenting space, you’ll also see me volunteering at Red Nose’s baby expos. I’ve recently become a member of Infant & Nursery Products Alliance of Australia (INPAA) which I’m really excited about, especially with the new sleep regulations coming soon and Safe Sleep Week coming up early next year. I help educate new and existing parents about Red Nose’s six safe sleep recommendations.
The Footprints program is also dear to my heart, and I’ll be continuing the volunteer work on the Bereavement Support Line. I remain committed to supporting Red Nose through these initiatives and also by promoting the organisation through my own work, socials, and events—whether that’s Footprints, Red Nose Day or at the baby expos.
Keen to join Red Nose as a volunteer? None of our work for families would be possible without the dedication, time and talents of the many thousands of volunteers all across Australia. We hold volunteer information sessions on a monthly basis. To register for the next information session or if you’d like to know more, click the button below.