About the Author
I'm Breege, I live in a small village in South West London, with my husband Shane, my energetic and amazing son Charlie, who grounds me in all that is good and right in this world, our goofy dog Rufus and our two cats Freddy and Monkey.
I am also Mom to Ruairí, my beautiful, sweet and oh so fierce little boy. Ruairí devastatingly died in 2018 from a rare and terminal disorder just six weeks after his first birthday.
Ruairí’s life, and his death, have altered my life irrevocably. As I navigate this life, holding my heart and the hearts of my son Charlie and my husband Shane delicately, I am finding a new and different meaning through writing. It’s how I make sense of myself in this world and how I honour and remember my son.
You can find me at instagram.com/storiesforourhearts
As part of my writing I have written Ruairí’s Rocket to heaven. After Ruairí died I turned to books to help Charlie understand his feelings and I couldn’t find a lot out there to help him. At the same time Charlie was drawing a lot and he drew a picture of his little brother going to heaven in a rocket. That idea inspired me to write this story, the story of the life and everlasting love between two brothers, and Charlie’s journey in life after the death of Ruairí. Initially I wrote the story in the notes app on my phone, and it stayed there for quite a long time. Then in late 2021 the timing felt right to really turn this story into a children’s book. With Charlie as editor, and Beth Cole as illustrator we worked on creating Ruairí’s Rocket to heaven.
The journey of writing and publishing it has been an emotional and cathartic one, it’s one of the most wonderful ways my family and I honour Ruairí’s life and it means so much that our story can help other young children and their families as they navigate their own incredibly difficult times.
Shooting Star Children’s Hospices, a leading children’s hospice charity caring for babies, children and young people with life limiting conditions, and their families provided my family with invaluable bereavement support so it is with much gratitude that the profit from book sales will be donated to this charity for the truly wonderful work they do. I am incredibly thankful to have their support and endorsement of my book.