17/08/2026
The wonderful story of Audrey’s bench…
Some pieces of furniture carry more than just the people who sit upon them.
Maureen, Paul, David, Moira and Lorraine have been given a treasure keepsake of their mum, Audrey Chivers, thanks to Darren from Midlands Cane and Garden Furniture and the power of social media.
In July we worked with Jemma and her family of a great local company, Midlands Cane and Garden Furniture to replace the outdoor furniture on a balcony at the chemotherapy suite at the LRI.
One of the benches had been there for 26 years, dedicated to Audrey Chivers. The weather had taken its toll on it over the years, so we decided to replace it with a new teak bench. But not to lose the memory for the family we asked for it to include the engraving shown on the original bench.
Darren of Midlands Cane and Garden Furniture couldn’t see the engraving go to waste, so carefully removed the engraved section, sanded it back and restored the teak, preserving it as a keepsake for the family.
This was such a lovely way to make sure the memory of Audery wasn’t lost by replacing her bench with the new one.
So! The search for Audrey’s family began!
A long shot we thought but we were hopeful the power social media would deliver ……
One week after our post to find the family, we had the absolute pleasure to re-unite the restored inscription to Moira- Moz Griffin - one of Audrey’s five children.
Moz was over the moon with it and so thankful that Darren had taken so much time, effort and kindness to do this wonderful gesture.
She was so excited to go and tell / show the rest of her siblings Maureen, Paul, David and Lorraine.
To make it even more special, the bench was delivered on 31st July, unknowingly the anniversary of Audrey’s passing… she must have been giving her approval. ❤️
What an absolute wonderful ending to the story of Audrey’s bench!
Thank you to Jemma and family for their part, especially her dad, Darren, who took the time to lovingly restore the engraving and start this story.
The words on Audrey’s bench are so true: FAMILY, LOVE, FAITH, STRENGTH, COURAGE