Freeman Brothers was first established as a funeral director in Horsham, West Sussex, in 1855. The company now has a further three offices across the county – in Billingshurst, Crawley and Hurstpierpoint – and continues to serve local people with dedication and integrity. Having adopted an online charity donation platform in 2018, a milestone was hit in 2023, and Becky tells us more…
In 2023, our online fundraising pages reached a milestone of receiving over £1,000,000 of donations since we began use of MuchLoved in 2018. This was an exciting time for us, as when we first added online tribute pages to our services, it was in recognition of demand for this, but there were many people who still weren’t sure that it would be popular. Unsurprisingly, it did take a little while to encourage usage of these pages, however once more people adopted digital technologies and developed greater confidence throughout 2020, we saw donations increase substantially.
We wanted to recognise this accomplishment, and with input from a variety of colleagues, settled on an ongoing interactive idea which was led by Jennifer, who works in our Crawley office. She has worked to create two leaflets – one of which supports those who are bereaved, and one that offers people the opportunity to share their wishes specifically relating to charitable donations.
The ‘MuchMissed’ leaflets which are available to support those who are bereaved are displayed in a heart shape, and fold out to reveal a message about their use. The fold-out design was origami-inspired, with the subtle inference that this is a mindful activity in order to support a sense of calm. We are often told that people have things which were left unsaid between themselves and the deceased person. These leaflets offer the space to share a few final words and thoughts, and may then be placed in the coffin. As they are simply made of paper, they are safe to remain in the coffin whether the person is to be buried or cremated. They are roughly the size of an adult palm when folded, and so are ideal to place in the person’s hand, or can be slipped into a pocket of their clothing.
Shortly after baskets of these leaflets and pens were positioned in the public areas of our offices, we received some positive feedback, along with the request to position the note, ‘in his jacket pocket, close to his heart’. We thought that this was a lovely demonstration of the use of these notelets, and the symbolism they will carry for many.
The other available leaflet is shared as a method of communicating which charity/ies a person would like to receive funds in memory of them when they die. These cards have been designed to be a similar size to a Donor card, so that they can be kept safely. Some people prefer to nominate more than one charity, to reflect their different interests, or even to give others the choice of which to support. We are pleased that this opportunity is offered via MuchLoved – when donating to a page with more than one charity attached, donors can choose whether to donate to a specific one, or for their donation to be split between the two.
As finances are often private, it can be that some people donate to a cause throughout their lifetime without their loved ones being aware, so communicating their wishes via a card means that they can leave this information behind for when the time comes.
It can be difficult to share your thoughts verbally – particularly with challenging topics such as bereavement – and we hope that these resources will help people to ensure that their wishes are carried out, or they feel that things aren’t quite so left unsaid.
If you’d like to make use of them, they can be found via any of our branches now.
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