A school in Farnham Royal has created a memory garden for the late Ruth Strauss, the former wife of cricketer Sir Andrew Strauss.
Pupils and teachers at Caldicott School have made the shrine for Dying Matters Awareness Week (May 10 to May 16), to support the Ruth Strauss Foundation charity, which was set up by Sir Andrew – an ex-Caldicott School student.
The school planted several red ‘Pretty Woman’ tulips for their #RedforRuth garden, which will give students the opportunity to find out more about the charity, Ruth’s story, and the importance of talking openly about grief, death and dying.
Ruth sadly passed away following a brave battle from a rare form of lung cancer on December, 29, 2018, aged 46.
She was diagnosed with the incurable cancer which impacts non-smokers at the start of that year.
Sir Andrew Strauss said: “Teaching our younger generation about grief, death and dying is very important so that when faced by such difficult moments, they know that talking about it is OK – it’s not a taboo.
“We, as adults, need to give kids the permission to talk about this.
“I am therefore delighted that we have a growing number of schools, like my old school Caldicott, connecting with our cause, helping us raise awareness of the importance of pre-bereavement support and valuable funds to ensure we can support families facing one of life’s toughest tests.”
CEO at Ruth Strauss Foundation, Karina Murtagh, added: “Central to our mission to support young families facing the death of a parent, is helping our society understand the importance of talking more openly about death and dying.
READ MORE: Lords to turn red in honour of former Marlow resident Ruth Strauss
“We’re therefore so grateful for the support from Caldicott who are helping us start these difficult, but necessary, conversations with young people.
“It’s been an incredibly tough year for so many people who sadly have experienced the death of a loved one.
“The #RedforRuth memory gardens will provide a beautiful space in schools for teachers to talk to their students openly on the subject of death and understanding it as part of life.”
To find out more about the charity, or to donate, visit: ruthstraussfoundation.com.
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