Liverpool well being organisation to 'Carry the Weight' for Alfie's Squad

Lightbody Health CIC will be taking part in their annual ‘Carry the Weight’ walk in September from Southport to Otterspool Prom in Liverpool.

This year, they have decided to team up with Alfie’s Squad CIC by launching ‘Carry the Weight for Alfie’s Squad, 2024’.

Alfie’s Squad supports children, and their families, who have been bereaved by suicide. They have a peer support group for children bereaved by suicide in Liverpool which supports children from all over Merseyside and beyond. This group is the first of its kind in the UK.

Brian Lightbody, founder of Lightbody Health CIC, and Paul Growney, a director of the CIC, along with their ever-increasing group of volunteers, as well as Alfie’s Squad founder, Alfie Fitzsimmons, and some of his supporters will be taking part in this arduous 12 hour walk, covering just over 26 miles.

Some of the participants will be carrying 35lbs of weight, whilst others will be sharing the load between them.

Each of these 35lbs represents a bereaved family who are currently being supported by Alfie’s Squad. This weight not only symbolises people that they have lost, but also the heavy burden that these families carry trying to cope with their grief.

Alfie’s Squad currently supports more than 40 children in or person, as well as children online from across the country. All these children have lost a loved one to suicide.

Everything within Alfie’s Squad has been set up by now 15-year-old Alfie. He tragically lost his dad in 2017 when he was just eight years old. Alfie struggled with feelings of guilt and isolation. He wanted to meet other children in his situation, but there was nothing in the whole of the UK, so Alfie decided to step up and sort it out himself.

Brian Lightbody said:

“Having seen the impact Alfie’s Squad has made towards supporting children bereaved by suicide, I was extremely moved and felt our ‘Carry the Weight’ challenge couldn’t support a more worthy cause.

“We started the ‘Carry the Weight’ challenge nearly five years ago and have continued with it every year since, raising funds to help decrease social isolation and mental health issues in our community.

“It is a gruelling challenge that represents the weight mental health issues can have on people and the suffering felt by loved ones left behind. Ours is only a physical struggle on the day, yet that struggle is a daily occurrence for others.

“At Alfie’s Squad they are supporting the most vulnerable children through what is probably the hardest period of their lives. Losing a loved one by suicide would be a burden for anybody to handle but for a child you can imagine the questions and the trauma that might arise.

“Helping them understand, come to terms and empower the rest of their lives through community and connection is only the start of what Alfies Squad are achieving.

“I think supporting Alfies Squad by carrying the weight of the children’s lost loved ones will be a small step in providing support for them to carry on their fantastic work in our communities’.

“Our Carry the Weight walkers will be joined by the families being supported by Alfie’s Squad for the final part of the walk, which will be a poignant tribute to the people they have lost.

Alfie Fitzsimmons said:

“I am honoured that Lightbody Health, and their amazing staff and volunteers have chosen to work with Alfie’s Squad for ‘Carry the Weight’ this year.

“It feels really special that people recognise what we are doing to help families who have been bereaved by suicide.

“It is going to be a very tough day for me physically, but it will be worth it at the end.”

To support the fundraiser, visit the website HERE.

If you would like to refer a child into Alfie’s Squad or Alfie’s Squad Online, all you have to do is fill out the referral form below and a member of the team will contact you within 72 hours to arrange for you and your child to attend a triage session.

The triage is necessary to make sure that Alfie’s Squad is the best way for you to support your child at this point. The form is simple, and the triage process is completed in a sensitive manner. To find out more about Alfie’s Squad and the referral process, visit: alfiessquad.org/referral/