Dear Daughter

When 19-year-old Ann from Florida, USA was shot by her boyfriend in 2010, her family were thrust into a nightmare, one that meant taking the agonising decision to withdraw her life support.
In this intensely moving account of violence and loss, Ann’s mother, Kate, tells Namulanta that instead of pursuing the traditional court process, she chose something almost unheard of at the time - restorative justice. Sitting face to face with the man who killed her daughter she entered a process that allowed her to shape his sentence and speak openly about the impact of Ann’s death.
In her highly emotional letter to Ann for Dear Daughter, Kate reveals an extraordinary decision—one that will stay with you long after her story ends.

To find out more about Dear Daughter, to take part, or read our privacy notice, please go to www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter. Or you can contact the team via WhatsApp on +44 800 030 4404.

Ajit, a dad from India, tells Namulanta about realising just how tough the world can be for his daughters as they grow up in a male dominated society.
He’s funny, honest and totally unfiltered as he talks about being on a huge learning curve as a ‘girl dad’, and admits that parenting is far harder than any management job he’s ever had.
And the conversation ends with a very emotional moment, as Ajit reveals how he discovered what truly matters in his life.
To find out more about Dear Daughter, to take part, or read our privacy notice, please go to www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter. Or you can contact the team via WhatsApp on +44 800 030 4404.

Brenda, a Canadian mother living with chronic kidney disease, was facing a long and uncertain wait for a transplant, until 2013 when her daughter Kielah stepped forward with an extraordinary act of love.
Kielah volunteered to donate a kidney, but when tests revealed she wasn’t a match, she refused to give up. Instead, she entered Canada’s paired exchange programme, donating her kidney to a stranger so that Brenda could receive a compatible one in return.
In a poignant letter for Dear Daughter, Brenda reflects on the “ticking clock” of living with a transplant and her daily gratitude for the daughter whose selflessness saved her life. Now a mother herself, Kielah tells Namulanta Kombo about watching her mum’s decline and why, despite the risks, she didn’t hesitate to give up a kidney to save her mum.
To find out more about Dear Daughter, to take part, or read our privacy notice, please go to www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter. Or you can contact the team via WhatsApp on +44 800 030 4404.

Namulanta Kombo is collecting letters of advice from around the world, to create a handbook for life for her daughter Koko – and daughters everywhere.
This season, Namulanta speaks to Brenda and Kielah from Canada, who tell her about the extraordinary and life-saving decision Kielah made for her mum.
Ajit from India reflects on the moment he realised just how challenging it is for his daughters to grow up in a male-dominated society.
She also meets Bella, who lives in Dubai, and is raising her daughter born with global development delay. She shares how she’s had to redefine her expectations of parenthood.
Namulanta welcomes her first-ever guest from Japan as Tamaki describes her daughter’s Seijin no Hi (Coming of Age Day).
In 2010, Ann from Florida, USA was shot and killed by her boyfriend. Ann’s mother, Kate, shares an astonishing and deeply moving letter to her daughter.
This series, we’ll even hear some ‘Dear Son’ letters, and we’ll be catching up with some of our guests from previous seasons. Expect thoughtful conversations, brilliant advice, laughter, wisdom and tears.
And we’d love to hear from you! Send us your letter for your daughter, or a daughter figure in your life…or, for this season, a son! Email [email protected] or visit www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter to find out more.
You can read our privacy notice here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3ZFHNV8v7qgTm1zbKbkwsvR/dear-daughter-privacy-notice

Shelley’s daughter leaves for college – it’s a thrilling moment for everyone, but at the same time there’s a sense of loss. What will happen to their family when one piece of it is missing?
So Shelley writes her daughter a letter with all the advice and memories she wants her to take as she heads off on her new adventure. She hides it in her daughter’s suitcase to find when she gets there.
And then she shares it with Dear Daughter! She tells Namulanta about keeping in touch, staying connected – and the surprising upsides of your child leaving home. Plus Namulanta and her daughter Koko reflect on what it’ll be like when Koko leaves home one day.
Letter writer: Shelley

Dear Daughter is an award-winning podcast from the BBC World Service about love, life, family, and raising children. It is the brainchild of Namulanta Kombo, a mother on a quest to create a ‘handbook to life’ for her daughter, through the advice of parents from all over the world.

Each episode, a guest reads a letter they’ve written to their children (or their future children, or the children they never had) with the advice, life lessons, and personal stories they’d like to pass on.

Expect extraordinary true stories, inspirational advice for parents, and moving accounts of families, relationships and raising daughters.

Share your letter! What do you want to say to your kids? Or the next generation? Do you have thoughts on motherhood, fatherhood, or parenthood to share? Whether you are a mum or mom, dad or papa, grandparent, uncle, aunt, daughter, son or just want to write a letter, send us a WhatsApp message on +44 800 030 4404 or visit https://www.bbcworldservice.com/deardaughter