A charity that provides a professional service for those affected by the sudden and traumatic death of a child or young adult has been chosen as the Valero Pembroke Refinery Charity of the year.

Following a site-wide vote, bereavement charity 2Wish will join forces with the refinery’s workforce to raise funds for the group.

Set up in 2012 by Rhian Burke following the death of her infant son George and husband Paul, the charity has grown to provide support for families across Wales following the death of a loved one.

Since its inception they have supported over 5,000 individuals, worked with South Wales Police to better equip officers when supporting families, NHS Wales and to reassure donor families that they are not alone when dealing with their grief.

Ambassadors for the charity include Coldplay drummer Will Champion, TV Presenter Nick Knowles and renowned actor Michael Sheen.

Speaking at the launch of the partnership recently, Vice President and General Manager of the refinery Mark Phair praised the charity for their work.

“After listening to Rhian’s story and the origins of the charity it makes you take stock and think about how you would react if a death of an infant or young adult occurred in your family.

“The work 2Wish are doing is inspirational and I’m delighted to be able to name them as our charity of the year for 2023 and we are all looking forward to working with them for the year ahead.”

The charity’s founder and Chief Executive Rhian Manning said:

“If it wasn’t for people like those working at Valero, supporting 2wish by both raising much needed funds and awareness for the charity, we couldn’t help the families here in Wales.

“We are over the moon to be working with everyone at Valero and are excited about the next 12 months.

“Being from Pembrokeshire, it’s great to be working with such a wonderful organisation where many people will now learn about our charity.”