As part of our 40 Stories for 40 Years campaign, we’re sharing 40 individual stories that reflect the journey, people, and moments that have shaped Umbrella since 1985. Each story highlights a different voice from within our organisation, celebrating the experiences, relationships, and memories that continue to define who we are today.
This story comes from Dale, a long-standing supporter of Umbrella whose connection to our work is rooted in her own family experiences. Through fundraising, volunteering and championing opportunities for children and young people with disabilities, Dale has supported Umbrella in countless ways over the years.
For Dale, supporting Umbrella comes from a deeply personal understanding of just how important the right support can be for children, young people and their families.
Dale works for Aramark at the University of Derby and has been a dedicated supporter of Umbrella for a number of years. From Christmas present collections and Easter egg appeals to summer campaigns, fundraising and volunteering, she has continually found ways to help.
But behind that support is Dale’s own family story.
Dale has four grandchildren with autism, all with very different needs, personalities and abilities. Some are highly independent, while others need much more support with communication and day-to-day life. One of her grandsons did not speak until he was eight and now uses his iPad as an important communication tool.
Seeing the world through her grandchildren’s experiences completely changed Dale’s understanding of the challenges some families face.
“Until we had the grandchildren with these needs, we never realised what people went through. For me, I wanted to give something back.”
Dale and her husband are a huge part of their family’s support network. Their grandchildren regularly stay with them, giving their parents some much-needed respite, and they have even adapted their home to make it a comfortable and familiar environment for them.
Everything has its place, from the cups each child prefers to the foods and snacks they know and feel comfortable with.
“Our house is home from home for them,” Dale explained.
It was through this personal experience that Dale became increasingly determined to support other families who may not have the same network around them. She had heard about Umbrella and the work we do with children, young people and families across Derby and Derbyshire and decided she wanted to help.
Around five or six years ago, Dale began using her position at tAramark, University of Derby to encourage colleagues, students, friends and family to donate Christmas presents for local charities, including Umbrella.
Since then, her support has continued to grow.
Each Christmas, donations are collected for children and young people. At Easter, Dale organises Easter egg collections. And after deciding that the gap between Easter and Christmas simply felt too long, she helped introduce a summer campaign too.
The summer appeal has included items such as backpacks, sensory toys, sun cream and other useful products for families during the school holidays.
“I said, ‘We need to do something in the summer,’” Dale recalled.
Her involvement has extended far beyond collections.
Alongside colleagues, Dale has organised a large raffle to raise money towards an Umbrella pantomime. She and other members of the team then volunteered at the event itself, making sweet bags, cupcakes and biscuits and serving hot chocolate and marshmallows.
Dale and her colleagues have also taken part in volunteer days, helping with projects such as painting and improving outdoor spaces, as well as supporting Umbrella events and fundraising activities.
She even created and donated a busy board after seeing how much enjoyment her own grandchildren got from theirs.
“Whether it’s a child or an adult with learning difficulties, they’ll have hours of fun with it,” she said.
Despite everything she contributes, Dale is quick to play down just how much she does.
“I just wanted to give something back to help other people. That’s the main thing.”
At the University of Derby, Dale and her team became involved with Project SEARCH, which gave young people with learning disabilities the opportunity to undertake supported internships.
One young man, Kristoff, made a particularly lasting impression on her.
When he first joined the team, he found communication and eye contact difficult and spoke very little. Dale was determined to give him the opportunity to develop his confidence rather than assume he was incapable.
She encouraged colleagues to wear name badges and, every time they passed him, ask him to say their name.
“Do not help him. Do not say it for him. Let him take his time,” she told the team.
Over time, his confidence grew.
He was eventually offered employment and, two years later, Dale remained someone he could turn to when he needed support. His role developed too, moving from working solely as a kitchen porter to spending part of his time working in the kitchen as a chef.
In January, Dale nominated him for an award recognising his work, which he went on to win.
Another intern, Lily, who is autistic and selectively mute, also joined the team. After completing her placement in Starbucks, an opportunity became available and Dale was able to offer her employment.
The transformation Dale saw in both young people reinforced something she feels incredibly strongly about.
“There are so many young adults out there. Just give them a chance,” she said. “I wish every company would just give them a chance because I think one day that can be one of my grandchildren. They just need that chance.”
For Dale, inclusion does not mean lowering expectations. It means making the adjustments someone may need in order to show what they are capable of.
She believes people with disabilities should have the same opportunities to work, learn, develop and contribute as anybody else.
Her commitment to this has also been recognised beyond Umbrella. Dale received a Civic Award at the University of Derby for her work around employment and disability, and she has also been nominated for a community award.
But recognition has never been what motivates her.
“I don’t do it for that,” she said. “Just put me in the background. I’m fine.”
For Dale, it simply comes back to helping where she can.
Although her own grandchildren have not used Umbrella’s services, she has seen first-hand the difference that support can make to families who may not have the same network that hers does.
“I’m one of the lucky ones. My children have got a good support network,” she said. “For Umbrella to exist and be there for those people is amazing.”
After years of fundraising, volunteering and championing opportunities for children and young adults with disabilities, Umbrella has become an organisation particularly close to Dale’s heart.
“I think they’ll always have a special place in my heart. That’s not through personally using their services, but just seeing what a fantastic job they do to help other people.”
We are incredibly grateful to Dale for everything she has done, and continues to do, for Umbrella. Her kindness, generosity and commitment have supported our work in so many different ways over the years, and her willingness to give her time, energy and resources to help others means a great deal to our whole team.
Supporters like Dale make a genuine difference to the children, young people and families we work with. Whether she is organising a collection, volunteering at an event, fundraising with colleagues or simply looking for another way to help, her support is always given with real care and compassion.
Dale’s story is a reminder that supporting Umbrella can take many different forms. It can be donating an Easter egg, baking a cupcake, giving up a day to volunteer, organising a fundraiser or simply choosing to give somebody an opportunity.
We feel very lucky to have Dale as part of the wider Umbrella community, and we cannot thank her enough for the support she has shown us over the years.
As Dale put it, if everybody could do just a little bit, together those small acts can make a very big difference.