Browns tell how death of baby daughter helped save John Smith's grandchild
Gordon and Sarah Brown have told how the tragic death of their baby daughter 15 years ago helped save the life of the grandchild of former Labour leader John Smith.
Gordon and Sarah Brown have told how the tragic death of their baby daughter 15 years ago helped save the life of the grandchild of former Labour leader John Smith.
The couple helped set up a research laboratory in Edinburgh after their premature daughter Jennifer died aged just 10 days old in 2002.
Mr Smith's daughter Catherine Smith, 43, revealed work carried out at the lab "impacted directly" on the care given to her daughter Ella McConnachie and "improved her chance of survival" after she was born at 28 weeks weighing just 1lb 10oz.
She is now aged two.
Former PM Mr Brown described Catherine's father as "my friend, my colleague, my mentor", saying that even 23 years after his death the politician is still "sorely missed".
Fifteen years after Jennifer's death, he said he and his wife are "so proud" to see what has been achieved by staff at the Jennifer Brown Research Laboratory (JBRL) at the University of Edinburgh.
He said: "Sarah and I never had the joy of experiencing Jennifer taking her first steps, or speaking her first words, or going to school for the first time.
"But we have realised that after 15 years, out of tragedy some good can come."
Mrs Brown said: "It's extraordinarily important to know that Ella has survived and thrived, she is an amazing, bouncy fully healthy little girl. That's what you want every baby to have the opportunity to be."
She told Press Association Scotland: "There is nothing worse than to lose a child, but to know that she is part of our family, she is in our heart, we have the same love for her that we always will have, that won't change. Any mother who has lost a child will share that experience.
"But we have our amazing two sons, we're a brilliant family, and Jennifer is in there and part of it even though she is not with us."