We are devastated to let you know that Louise Williams, our much-loved Charity Coordinator of 12 years, passed away last week. She died peacefully with her loved ones around her.
Louise’s impact on First Touch and on the Neonatal Unit at St George’s has been hugely significant. Through her determination and her creativity, she was instrumental in developing so many of the welfare projects that we offer our staff and families. She was always a strong believer that the smallest things can often make the biggest difference and we are proud to have been able to adopt this mindset as part of our charity’s ethos.
Louise was funny, kind, quirky and clever. She faced her illness in much the same way that she tackled most things, with nerves of steel, determination and a great deal of humour. She was so upset at the thought of leaving First Touch and the job she loved so much, and she kept going in her post for as long as she possibly could. She even continued to send us ideas and prompts from her bed, right up until a couple of weeks ago, always thinking of ways to make things better, always thinking of the babies and their families, even at the end of her own life.
We don’t really have the words to sum up Louise’s contribution to the Neonatal Unit, or to convey how utterly heartbroken we all feel. We would dearly love for her legacy to continue for years to come. Louise was a key driver behind First Touch’s provision of books on the neonatal unit. She understood how beneficial it was for parents to read to their babies as a means of empowerment and to develop that all-important bond, as well as to reduce physiological and emotional distress in babies. As a charity, we provide monthly books for babies, books for siblings in a variety of languages and information books for parents. Moving forward, First Touch’s provision of all books on the unit will be referred to as ‘Louise’s Library’. We hope to be able to develop this idea further as we move forward as a charity.
It was always a pleasure to have Louise in our team and we will never forget the enormous difference she made to First Touch. Goodbye, our dearest, sweetest friend. xxxx
