WAY welcomes new trustee, Emma

July 2025

WAY Widowed and Young is pleased to welcome a new member to the charity’s Board of Trustees – former WAY Ambassador Emma Charlesworth.

Emma joined WAY in June 2020, just under two months after being widowed at the age of 39 when her husband Stuart “Charlie” Charlesworth died of COVID-19 aged 45. She has one daughter, Rebekah. 

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Emma became an Ambassador for WAY in 2021 as she wanted to give a voice to those who had lost loved ones to COVID-19 and during the pandemic. She went on to represent WAY on the Lived Experience Advisory Forum for the UK Commission on Bereavement's report ‘Bereavement is Everyone’s Business’. 

In 2023, Emma joined our team of volunteers who host the New Member Zooms for new members to come along to and share about the support available to them. Emma’s experiences with WAY to date have shown her what a lifeline this charity is to so many. She is due to attend her first WAY Board meeting in July.

“Becoming a Trustee felt like a natural step to give back to a charity which has been so important to me,” she says. “Since my late husband died, I’ve raised over £15,000 for various charities important to my family, including WAY, and my aim is to bring the knowledge and experience gained in a personal capacity to the Trustee role and look for ways to raise much-needed funds for WAY to make sure it can continue to provide support to those who need it.”

What do WAY's Trustees do?

Emma joins WAY’s Board of Trustees, who help make key decisions about finances and help to steer the future direction of the charity. 

WAY's Trustees formally meet six times a year – both online and in person. Between the meetings Trustees support the activities for the charity, for example, by taking part in our diversity working groups.

WAY's Trustees are all volunteers, fitting their responsibilities around other commitments. 

WAY's Chief Executive Stephanie Patrick said: “We are very grateful to WAY volunteers like Emma who volunteer their time and expertise so generously to give back to the charity that has helped them in their bereavement – and who are helping to make sure WAY is being run effectively and robustly to help support young widowed men and women across the UK today, tomorrow and into the future.”