Feature Her Fridays
🪷Laura Dalton from Blooming Lotus Project CIC
Blooming Lotus Project CIC provides peer support for women who experienced the death of their mother by early adulthood. We also focus on raising awareness of the profound and lifelong effects of this specific bereavement.
It took thirty years for me to recognize the profound impact my mother's death had on my life. In 2022, I attended a retreat in the USA for motherless daughters, and that is where my healing truly began. Having the opportunity to explore my loss with twenty other women who shared common thoughts and feelings—while also learning the theory behind it—was a validating and empowering experience. I am now incredibly passionate about providing a safe space for women to connect and revisit their loss from an adult perspective. https://bloominglotusprojectcic.my.canva.site/
There is so much to learn about early mother loss that simply wasn't developmentally available to us when we were younger. By understanding our grief and the common long-term effects we share, we become empowered and equipped to navigate our loss with self-compassion.
#WomenSteppingOut #WomenSupportingWomen #CommunityVoices #InspiringWomen #SpotlightSeries
#SafeSpaces #SelfCompassion #EmotionalHealing #MentalHealthAwareness
🥦Jo Harper is a Wilder Community Organiser at Warwickshire Wildlife Trust.
She says “I worry about nature’s decline and climate change, but vowed to do whatever I could to help! The more people involved, the more impact. This inspires me to build a network of community groups and individuals committed to addressing the nature crisis, creating habitats and making neighbourhoods more attractive. This inspires me to educate thousands of children about the importance of pollinators through the Bee Friendly School Awards. I dream of seeing our towns alive with wildlife, with people enjoying nature’s beauty and appreciating the benefits nature brings: food security and lower prices, cleaner air and water, improved physical and mental health. Nature also mitigates many impacts of climate change.”
“You don’t have to be an expert participate. Leamington’s hedgehog, swift, ancient tree, rewilding and bee groups are composed of local people who simply want to make a difference. They are also led by women! I support them in connecting with others, collaborating, engaging with powerholders and making good things happen. Even the smallest changes make a difference! As Dr Jane Goodall, said, “What you do makes a difference and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” Women are a powerful, but under-celebrated force in conservation and I encourage all women to get involved.”
Jo Harper email: joanne.harper@wkwt.org.uk; Instagram: lemmy_loves_nature; LinkedIn: Jo Harper
Bee Friendly Leamington email:beefriendlyleamington@gmail.comFacebook: Bee Friendly Leamington; Instagram @bee_friendly_ken_leam
Spa Swifts email: spa.swifts@gmail.com; Facebook: Spa Swifts
Leamington Hedgehog Community email:Leamington.Hedgehog.Community@outlook.com; Facebook: Leamington Hedgehog Community
Rewilding Brunswick email:pleiades12001@gmail.com; Facebook: Rewilding Brunswick
#WomenSteppingOut #WomenSupportingWomen #CommunityVoices #InspiringWomen #SpotlightSeries #SafeSpaces #SelfCompassion #EmotionalHealing #MentalHealthAwareness
🧠Kirsty Heath from Heath Bespoke Therapy
She says “I run KH Bespoke Therapy in Warwickshire, supporting adults and young people who have experienced trauma, anxiety, ADHD and emotional overwhelm. My work blends evidence based therapy like EMDR, counselling and CBT with gentler holistic approaches so people feel safe, seen and understood while they heal. I also support families who are navigating neurodivergence, especially parents who are trying to do their best in a system that is not always kind or simple.”
“I was inspired to do this work through my own lived experience. I have walked through trauma, burnout and the feeling of being broken and I know how lonely that place can be. Becoming a mum to a neurodivergent child deepened that calling even more. It showed me just how powerful acceptance, compassion and understanding can be when a child is allowed to be who they are without being fixed.”
“If I could share one message with other women it would be this. You are not behind, broken or failing. You are doing something brave just by showing up. Trust yourself more. You matter far more than you realise.”
khbespoketherapy.com
🏃♀️Anne Love is one of the founding members and a Run Directors for Warwick Race Course Park Run.
Here is what she said regarding her involvement in community service, “I have been very happy to volunteer with parkrun for several years now. It is extremely rewarding, and I highly recommend it to anyone.”
When asked what inspired her to volunteer, she said, “I started as a runner at Leamington Parkrun and was blown away by the positive and socially inclusive atmosphere. So, when a call went out for volunteers to start a new parkrun at Warwick Racecourse, I was very happy to put my hand up. Thus, I became one of the founder Run Directors for Warwick Racecourse parkrun in 2019. After much planning, setting out the route in the safest way, getting it approved by parkrun headquarters, and acquiring all the set-up equipment, we were almost ready for our inaugural run. Just one more thing was needed - a defibrillator, which is mandatory for parkrun. Fortunately, I managed to get funding from my ex-employer, Volvo, to purchase a defibrillator. So, we made a good start on 28th September 2019.”
“Then came COVID, and we had to stop for several months. However, we are now thriving and have gone from small numbers to sometimes over 600 runners and walkers. In order for parkrun to go ahead, we need up to 26 volunteers each week. As one of the team of run directors, I am responsible for organising and managing the run every 4 or 5 weeks. When I am not a run director, I am very happy to volunteer in whatever role is needed. I very rarely run anymore. Running, walking, volunteering - parkrun is an amazing and inclusive opportunity for all, and it is totally FREE OF CHARGE! Every Saturday at 9:00 a.m. (except when the horse racing is on - we cannot compete with that!)”
“In addition to parkrun, I am also membership secretary for my choir, and I have volunteered for the NHS as a marshal for vaccination clinics.”
Parkrun website https://www.parkrun.org.uk/warwickracecourse/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/share/1BCXLiEubA/ #WomenSteppingOut #Parkrun #WarwickRacecourseParkrun #CommunityService #Volunteering #GivingBack #localheroes @parkrun
⛪Suzette Aagaard
We are delighted to introduce a new voice in Warwick. Suzette is a community-minded leader whose work is quietly connecting people, strengthening networks, and serving some of the town’s most vulnerable residents.
Suzette said,
Hello!
I am a relative newcomer to Warwick, having taken up the post of Families and Community Engagement Minister at the Collegiate Church of St Mary in September 2024. Before this, I spent 30 years in London in a varied career, most recently serving as a school chaplain, families minister and children’s hospital chaplain.
Coming from South London, I was used to visible and complex social challenges. I arrived in Warwick assuming I would encounter far fewer of these issues. It did not take long to realise my mistake and to challenge my own assumptions. Need exists everywhere; it just does not always look the same.
My role at St Mary’s is a privilege. It allows me to build relationships with those who come into church especially families while also looking outward to where we can serve the wider community. That service is not necessarily overtly “religious”; it is practical, relational, and rooted in action. There are plenty of opportunities in life to talk a good game. Church service, at its best, is about being Christ’s hands and feet.
It is not hard to find need in Warwick in many different forms. The greater challenge is responding effectively and sustainably. My work gives me the privilege of spending time not only with our congregation, but also with new mothers, school children, asylum seekers, Food Pantry clients and, in the coming weeks, patients at Warwick Hospital. It’s often said that “the mark of a civilised society is how it treats its most vulnerable members” and that feels especially relevant here.
As a new Warwickian, there is still so much I do not know. I have huge respect for those who are deeply connected and rooted in this town. One of my greatest joys is bringing people together, creating networks where knowledge, experience and resources can be shared.
A particular highlight since arriving alongside organising the Warwick Dog Show (which was epic!) and the forthcoming Warwick Festival of Peacebuilding has been launching *WarwickshireWomensWhatsApp*, a sisterhood-style WhatsApp group for women in Warwick. In a world where social media can often feel loud and exhausting, this is a space for women to share something far more valuable: wisdom.
If you would like to know more, please get in touch at community@stmaryswarwick.org.uk.
#FeatureHerFriday #WomenInLeadership #CommunityMatters #Warwick #ServiceInAction #StrongerTogether #WomenSupportingWomen
🤞Yvonne McKinnon
At Women Stepping Out we are delighted to spotlight Yvonne McKinnon who has founded the New Chapters substance misuse rehabilitation centre in Leamington Spa.
New Chapters is a residential supported living house who provides support to individuals who are navigating recovery and rebuilding their lives. New Chapters is all about walking alongside people during some of their most vulnerable moments, and helping them access the support they need, rebuild confidence, and believe that change is possible.
She said that she founded New Chapters because “I have seen, lived, and felt the devastating impact of addiction. I know what it’s like to feel powerless, invisible, and stuck in a cycle that seems impossible to break. I wanted other individuals who were trapped in addiction to have the chance of recovery like I did and the opportunity to repair the damage caused to their families, children and communities. Over the years I had noticed the cuts to drug/alcohol services and the impact this had on bed spaces in residential rehabs, they were becoming less and less, this gave me the motivation to set up New Chapters. It was vital for us to create an environment that was affordable, safe, stable, empathetic and non-judgemental in order for our residents and family members to feel safe, valued, seen & heard. New Chapters support individuals to discover their strengths, builds confidence and empowers them to close that chapter of their life and start to write the next one. I see every day the strength it takes for our residents to choose recovery, and it is an absolute privilege to be a part of their journey.”
When asked if there is any message she can give women. She said “To other women, I would say: believe in your strength, trust the journey—even when it’s hard—and know that by showing up with compassion and courage, you make a difference in your own life and in the lives of many others.”
Visit her website at https://www.newchapters.org.uk/what-we-do
#WomenSteppingOut #WomenInLeadership #WomenSupportingWomen #RecoveryMatters #AddictionRecovery #NewChapters #LeamingtonSpa #StrongerTogether #CommunityImpact #EmpowerHer #featureherfridays #BelieveInChange #CompassionInAction #RecoveryJourney #BreakingTheCycle #SafeSpaces #RebuildReclaimRise #InspirationInAction #SheLeads