Madison Lambden managed to turn a devastating private heartbreak into a way to help others. Her thoughtful, caring and generous work was recently rewarded—in a big and very public way.
At just 13 years old, she and her family suffered a profound personal tragedy: the loss of her 10-year-old brother Nicholas, who sustained a head injury from a puck and didn’t survive.
With time, she was able to turn her focus outward, channeling that immensely painful experience and using it as a driving force to help others. Because she knew firsthand how difficult grief and mourning could be, she wanted to provide a safe and caring space for those who needed it. She recognized such a resource didn’t exist in the area and never wanted anyone to feel as alone in their grief as she did.
In 2019, Madison and her mom, Susan Lambden, established The Nightingale Centre, a non-profit organization that provides compassionate grief and bereavement support to children, youth and their families in the Guelph and Wellington County area.
As one of the founding members, her first commitment was to raise $12,000 in 12 days to help launch the centre. Impressively, she met that goal easily and surpassed it, managing to raise over $20,000.
The centre offers grief support group programs, individual family grief support, memorial events, education and training. Programs and services are delivered by trained professionals and are available at no cost. Support is available for those who have already experienced, or are anticipating, the death of someone significant in their lives.
Madison has successfully built a network of donors, corporate sponsors and volunteers, and every week devotes countless hours to identifying the resources that can help the centre thrive and grow.
On February 6, 2025, Madison received a 2024 Mayor’s Award at the Mayor’s State of The City Address. These awards recognize people who make the city a better place through their volunteer efforts, honouring them for their volunteer contributions to a number of different aspects of city life, including arts and culture, health and mental health, community building, athletics and the environment.
Madison was described as a positive role model and a real agent of change.
“I’m beyond honoured to have been named the recipient of a 2024 Mayor’s Award. Serving and giving back to my community, especially through the work of The Nightingale Centre, has been one of the greatest honours and joys of my life. My brother’s existence, influence, presence and story has altered my purpose and the course of my life’s work in so many ways. And with that, I hope I’m forever working to fulfill our vision of a community where no child or family grieves alone.”
Her proud colleagues at Terra View Homes congratulate Madison on this well-earned distinction and look forward to supporting her continuing efforts to help kids, adolescents and their families navigate grief and loss.
RESOURCES
This article was sponsored by Terra View Custom Homes , a 2024 GuelphToday Reader Favourite.