Right now, people across Victoria are digging deep and raising funds to help provide world-class care to young patients at the RCH – and I’m hoping you will do the same.
By donating, you will help children like six-year-old Oliver.
Before even meeting their newborn child, Oliver’s parents received heartbreaking news – their baby boy was suffering from a rare congenital heart defect.
The news was devastating. “We didn’t think that it could happen to us,” Jacinta, Oliver’s mum, shared. “I didn’t say a word for 30 minutes afterwards … just trying to process and wrap my head around what that meant,” Darcy, Oliver’s dad, recalled.
Their lives changed overnight. But the early diagnosis gave clinicians time to carefully plan his care and prepare his family for the challenging road ahead.
At just four weeks old, Oliver underwent lifesaving open-heart surgery. He also faced another surgery at just two years old.
“I remember thinking, if something happens to him when he’s on that table, at least I’ve got this last image of him etched in my mind,” Jacinta, Oliver’s mother recalled.
These are procedures no child should have to go through once, let alone twice.
Fortunately, because of the world-leading care he received at the RCH, Oliver was given the chance to keep fighting.
Today, Oliver is seven years old and thriving. While he still has a long road ahead of him, he wears his scar with pride and will confidently tell you all about his ‘special heart.’
Can you please help kids like Oliver by donating to the RCH Auxiliaries Good Friday Appeal campaign? Every dollar counts. Your donation can have a life-changing impact on so many children, just like Oliver.