An East Yorkshire infertility and baby loss support hub is now open after an emotional opening weekend. The Chasing Rainbows charity now has its own bricks-and-mortar centre, seven years after founder Sam Catanach held its first meeting with just six other women in a Hull cafe.
The hub in Brough has been made possible through a series of major fundraisers, including a walking event by TikTok influencer Joel Redhead and pal Shane Cole which raised a gobsmacking £115,000, and a Bongo’s Bingo style night held by Paul Webb and Clare Brooks in memory of their son Rocky, which raised £13,000.
The fundraisers show the depth of gratitude from Chasing Rainbows’ supporters and bereaved families, some of whom have been able to continue on their fertility journey and have the children they so longed for. As we have previously reported, it was Sam’s own painful journey which led to the creation of the charity, which has helped hundreds of families since gaining CIC accreditation in 2021.
The 39-year-old, of Kirk Ella, is now mum to Ted, 7, and Blossom, 4, but she had five miscarriages on her way to completing her family. From now, Sam and one other member of staff will be at the Brough hub to offer peer support, 1-2-1 support calls, free fertility coaching and in-person events from its very own base – and a potential podcast is also under discussion.
Sam said: “I thought that I’d finished crying about it, but then seeing everyone’s emotion and what it meant to them, it still brought a lot of tears and emotion for me. I can tell that it’s so huge and important and it’s keeping their babies’ memories alive.
“When people came in the room and saw the rainbow there were gasps – just seeing it gives them hope. We were really lucky to have lots of the families that we’ve helped to have a baby come along on Sunday, to sit their little ones under the rainbow. That was incredibly special. There were well over 100 through the door on Sunday and it’s only small!
“We’ve also received lots of cards and gifts in the post, which has been completely overwhelming – there has been so much love behind it. I never expect anything in return for what I give as a charity.
“But it does feel nice when people take the time to let you know what it means to them because it is a hard job. It is a very hard job that has a lot of sadness with it and it’s very heavy. So this has been really uplifting, to see a lot of happiness and joy.”
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