The pillows will be distributed to critically ill children across Guernsey to provide them comfort at home or at hospital, funded by the Coop Community Fund and Jon Ravenscroft.
‘Through our community fund, we’re proud to support charities and not-for-profit organisations whose values reflect our own,’ said Carl Winn, head of community and sustainability at the CI Coop.
‘It’s been a privilege to help the Priaulx Premature Baby Foundation and its Hug Me Pillows project, which is a lovely local initiative making a genuine difference to families in our community.’
As well as supporting premature babies and their families, the foundation is dedicated to providing support to critically ill children. Its Buy-A-Night campaign is aimed towards raising funds for the charity’s compassionate housing in Southampton, which enables Guernsey families to access free accommodation right next to the hospital.
Nighty the Owl is the mascot of this campaign, intended to be a reassuring presence and a nocturnal watchkeeper through long nights. The idea to transform it into a huggable pillow developed last year, after the foundation’s head of fundraising, Sara Edmonds, and marketing and communications lead, Stephie Gordon, attended Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place Festival.
There they met Lucy Freeth, the founder and creative director of UK-based brand House of Fandango, a company dedicated to creating mindful wellness products designed to support mental health, emotional wellbeing and positive self-esteem.
Ms Freeth had already developed a range of Hug-Me Pillows, and agreed to add a special edition Nighty Owl pillow to the range.
‘She designed them for us for free, as a gift to the charity,’ said Ms Edmonds.
‘It was really great that something came out of that festival.’
The pillows have been launched on The House of Fandango website for online orders, and are also sold from both the foundation’s office and Maison Lifestyle in the Commercial Arcade. The foundation will also be hosting a pop-up shop together with the House of Fandango on Sunday 26 April from 10am until noon, where islanders can browse some of the collection and buy their very own Nighty Owl – all the proceeds from which go to the foundation.
The pop-up shop will be located in La Petite Fontaine at St Pierre Park, and 20% of all sales – excluding Nighty Owl sales – will go to the charity.
‘The work the team at the Priaulx Premature Baby Foundation do is incredible,’ said Ms Freeth.
‘I’m so proud to have collaborated with them this year on the launch of our first ever charity partnership with our Nighty Owl, who supports critically ill children with a brave companion who, despite being small, can fly through the darkest of nights.’
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