BEK Stratfield from Tintagel takes great pride in her Cornish home and has worked hard to keep the local beaches clean, whilst also running her own business and dedicating her time to Missing People who have supported her since her son went missing in 2017.

Bek said: “I’ve lived in Cornwall since I was a teenager, and I’ve been running my gardening business for 20 years or so now. I have always loved the sea, the beach, surfing and being outdoors.”

Bek orchestrated the #findfinn campaign after her eldest son, Finn, aged 17 at the time, went missing on July 8, 2017. Bek has worked tirelessly since then to raise funds for the charity Missing People who have been by her side since her son went missing.

She said: “Our lives were turned upside down two and a half years ago when my eldest son Finn went missing when he was 17. Life has been hard in so many ways since then for myself and my family, but I have always strived hard to keep a positive head on my shoulders, and my love for Finn means that I will never give up doing whatever I can, and would never give up hope.”

Bek registered Finn with Missing People, and has since become a community ambassador and raised thousands of pounds for the charity through various events. She said: “I registered Finn with the charity Missing People as soon as he went missing. They are based in London and are the only UK charity dealing with the issue of missing — 180,000 people go missing in the UK each year!

“Since Finn went missing the charity have given me so much help in so many different ways, and I am now a community ambassador for them. They have given me many opportunities for raising awareness for Finn across the country.”

In March 2018, Bek and friends did the first ever ‘Walk for Finn’ in aid of Missing People by walking the Saints Way, raising a considerable sum of money for the charity. A second walk was arranged for 2019 and plans are now underway for a third this year.

Bek said: “Myself and my lovely, crazy, brave bunch of friends have shown me so much support, and we have completed two walks for Finn across Cornwall over the last two years, and pop up suppers, and have raised nearly £20,000 for Missing People which is just incredible. Our Walk for Finn 2020 is in the planning stages right now.”

After getting involved with Missing People, Bek decided to take on another challenge by joining the charity’s choir. She said the choir afforded her some ‘incredible opportunities’, including the chance to perform in front of 20,000 people live at the O2 arena: “In the face of adversity I also decided to join the Missing People Choir that are based in London, they were finalist’s in Britain’s Got Talent in 2017. I joined a few months after Finn went missing as I thought that it would be a good way to meet other people in my situation. I didn’t even know if I could sing when I turned up at my first rehearsal in central London, but two years later, and a lot of learning, I am a fully fledged alto in the choir.

“It has been a profound experience in many ways and we have had some incredible opportunities to sing at events in London and further afield, raise awareness of our missing loved ones, and we performed at the O2 last year in front of 20,000 people.”

Alongside her work with Missing People, Bek has also spent considerable time taking care of her local beaches, setting up a beach clean group.

Bek said: “In amongst all of this I have also set up a beach clean group called ‘Love Trebarwith Beach Clean’. This came about because of my love for my home beach, Trebarwith Strand. It’s been a really nice community thing to do, encouraging people to take care of the beach environment, and encouraging people to pick up marine litter when they visit the beach and not just on organised beach cleans.”

She added: “We meet once a month, and you can join Love Trebarwith Beach Clean group on Facebook for dates when we meet.”