In November P&G, the Proud Sponsor of Mums, launched the Champion Mums' Foundation: A campaign offering hardworking mums the chance to be awarded a bursary from a whopping £150,000 pot. The only stipulation was that the award had to be used towards making a positive difference to the winners' lives as mums, to their family or to the community. Here Tanya Tomlinson, a 37-year-old mum from Kent, tells us what winning the prize meant to her...
'As I looked over at the kids playing I couldn't help smiling. My three-year-old twins Alex and Ollie were showing their sister Anna, 6, a new toy.
"They're so good," I said to my hubby, David, 37.
'I hadn't always been this calm about the kids. I still remember when the doctor told me I was expecting twins. "We had IVF - but only one embryo was implanted," I'd said. Now, I had two identical baby boys growing inside me! How would we afford it?
"We'll cope," reassured David. And he was right, but it wasn't easy. Ask any mother, one screaming baby is enough!
'Shortly after the boys were born, I heard about Ashford Twins Club and went along. Parents with older twins were full of advice on how to cope and people passed on baby clothes and equipment they no longer needed. It was like meeting an extended family!
'We've been going nearly every week for the last three years, meeting other parents and helping organise charity events and parties for 40 or so families.
'I'd been thinking of new ways to raise money when I came across an article about the P&G Champion Mums' Foundation, which was giving away bursary awards to give mums the chance to improve their life or that of their family or community.
"This would be perfect for a special club day out," I said to David. Everyone had been short of money recently and we all needed a bit of cheering up.
'I filled in the application and pressed the enter button. I didn't expect to hear back. But I did... I'd been awarded a bursary! I couldn't wait to tell the group.
'We lined up an outing to see Peter Pan on Ice. Everyone was so excited, and when the day came, it was even more fun than we'd imagined, plus there was enough money for treats for the kids, too.
'Everyone had the best time ever. I'm so glad I took the time to apply - winning the P&G award got us all smiling and the memories will last for ages.'
Behind the prize
P&G, Proud Sponsor of Mums, has been making mums' lives easier for more than 170 years with trusted household brands such as Always, Bold and Iams. Now P&G is saying thank you to mums for all the amazing things they do. To find out more, go to www.thankyoumum.pg.com
