Brave granny 72 travels over 1000 miles to see her granddaughter.

“ I saw Jimmy and Margaret Deuchars of Grandparents Apart UK talking on GMT  TV about grandparents losing contact with their grandchildren and immediately felt a warmness from them and after a while I felt a compulsion to contact them. I Explained  to them that I lost my daughter to a brain illness and because of the devastation and mixed emotions I lost contact with my granddaughter and her paternal family. I felt It was the end of my world and being on my own I was so confused and in so much pain I didn’t know where to turn.

Jimmy and Margaret were very reassuring and understanding and after a time invited me to come up to Scotland to try and reconcile with my granddaughters family who had moved from England to Scotland.

Jimmy said, “she is a very brave lady to put her trust in strangers and travel all this way on her own not really knowing what was ahead of her but her determination to see her daughters child is very strong”.

The Gran said “Over two days we visited the paternal grandparents and with Margaret at my side to mediate it gave me the courage to go through with it. I was terrified as we approached the door, what if they reject me I thought. We were very courteously invited in by the granddad and with Margaret’s help explained why I was there and was listened to with interest and courtesy but after a while we left.

On our way back to Glasgow the phone went and it was my son to tell me the dad had come in from work and could I call back as he was very anxious to see me after what the granddad told him.

We put everything else on hold and about turned and headed straight back . My granddaughter whom I had only seen as a baby was waiting at the door and was overjoyed with excitement and said she will tell her whole class about her grandma from England visiting her.  My  son-in-law gave me a cuddle and we talked for a long time” and parted with cuddles and phone numbers and promises to keep in touch.  I was over the moon. Jimmy and Margaret took me to see my daughters grave and now I  will die a happy lady knowing that my daughter in heaven will be overjoyed at our reconciliation.

Margaret said “when people really put their heart into it and putting the welfare of child first it is amazing what can be achieved. Mediation certainly worked for this family and could work in 75% of problems in families if it is widely enough promoted.