A20 www.wltribune.com
Tuesday, May 28, 2013 Williams Lake Tribune
The 26Th annual BC ChilDren’s hOsPiTal’s MiraCle WeekenD
BC Children’s Hospital helps kids get care closer to home When 16-year-old Elliott Reid steps in front of the television cameras on the evening of June 1 as a co-host on BC Children’s Hospital’s Miracle Weekend telethon on Global BC, he will be able to speak from experience. The teen, who recently moved from Tumbler Ridge to Dawson Creek, has been a patient at the hospital since he was seven. Elliott was twice airlifted from Tumbler Ridge to BC Children’s Hospital when he suffered heart damage caused by a strep infection. He has had heart surgery at the hospital twice, once spending several days in the hospital’s pediatric Intensive Care Unit with his chest open while doctors monitored him for infection. Following the surgeries he received followup care at a pediatric clinic in Prince George. The clinic, at University Hospital of Northern British Columbia, was equipped with funding from Child Health BC, an initiative of BC Children’s Hospital. The clinic receives over 3,500 patient visits annually, saving families who live in and around Prince George the cost and inconvenience of a trip to Vancouver. “I love going to Vancouver now to participate in Miracle Weekend,” Elliott says. “But I know it was always a big hassle for my parents to have to take me all the way to Vancouver when I was sick.” Dr. Maureen O’Donnell, executive director of Child Health BC, says one of Child Health BC’s goals is to relieve families of the burden of travel. “We’re working with caregivers all over BC to ensure children across the province receive care in a consistent manner and, ideally, close to home.” Child Health BC’s activities took off after Overwaitea Food Group became the lead benefactor with a pledge of $20 million in support in 2007. TELUS and Scotiabank later made gifts of $5 million and $1 million, respectively. This support had an immediate impact, says O’Donnell. Clinics established with Child Health BC’s support in Nanaimo, Prince George and Prince Rupert have thousands of patient visits annually; additional travelling clinics are staffed by BC Children’s caregivers in communities across the province; and over 1,000 health professionals have participated in Child Health BC’s workshops. O’Donnell credits the Overwaitea Food Group’s donation with Child Health BC’s growing reach across the province, noting that it’s a perfect fit for an organization with a presence in so many BC communities. Overwaitea Food Group President Darrell Jones agrees. “At the Overwaitea Food Group, we’re committed to the health and wellness of kids and families in BC,” says Jones. “We’ve been proud to support BC Children’s Hospital for more than two decades – and with the help of our communities, we’ve contributed millions of dollars toward hospital improvement projects, advocacy programs and important research initiatives. We’re grateful for the amazing support of our local communities, team members, customers and supplier partners who have all played elliott with Global BC host steve Darling
a key role in making this fundraising success possible.” Child Health BC is part of a larger transformation in the way BC’s children receive care, says Larry Gold, president of BC Children’s Hospital and Sunny Hill Health Centre for Children. The transformation also includes the construction of a new BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. “We want to ensure children have access to a consistent standard of care, whether they live in Smithers, Campbell River or Castlegar; and there will always be children who need care that’s only available in a children’s hospital,” says Gold. BC Children’s Hospital Foundation has raised close to $170 million, including Overwaitea Food Group’s gift and $25 million from Teck Resources Limited, in its $200-million capital campaign to support construction of the new hospital and Child Health BC. Gold says that the new hospital, which will open in 2018, will be family-friendly, making it easier for families from outside the Lower Mainland to remain with their children. Beyond the money being raised for the new hospital and Child Health BC, Gold says the
hospital also counts on donations of about $14 million a year to support research, equipment purchases and training. On June 1 and 2 BC Children’s Hospital Foundation will hold its annual Miracle Weekend celebration on Global BC, to raise the millions the hospital needs to cover its urgent annual needs. “We are building a new hospital, but in the meantime we have to make sure we continue to provide BC’s kids with the very best in care today,” says Gold. “Every year people from across the province make donations in support of the hospital and it makes a huge difference. Elliott Reid is proof of that.” Elliott’s father, Tyler Reid, agrees: “BC Children’s Hospital has done so much for Elliott so we’re happy to help the hospital in any way we can. And it’s certainly more enjoyable to make the trip to Vancouver so that we can help other kids than it was when we were scared for Elliott’s life.”
JUNE 1 & 2, 2013 On June 1 and 2, tune in to Miracle Weekend, broadcast live from BC Children’s Hospital, on Global BC from 7:00pm on Saturday, June 1 until 5:30pm on Sunday, June 2 The 26th annual BC Children’s Hospital’s Miracle Weekend is a two-day celebration that showcases the best of BC Children’s Hospital: patients, their families, caregivers and supporters who come from every corner of BC. BC Children’s Hospital receives over 200,000 visits from patients from across the province every year. Donations help the hospital deliver the best in care every day, and are helping to prepare for the future by supporting the construction of a new BC Children’s Hospital and better access to care for children in or close to their home communities. Please support BC Children’s Hospital.
Donate at GiveSpace.ca or call 1-888-663-3033
At the Overwaitea Food Group, we’re very proud of our longstanding commitment to investing in the health of kids and their families. We’re grateful to everyone who supports us in this effort. Our team members, customers and suppliers have all played a key role in our fundraising success over the years. We’ve been supporting BC Children’s Hospital for more than two decades, and we’ve raised millions of dollars in support of capital improvement projects, important research initiatives and advocacy programs designed to help keep our kids safe by reducing preventable injuries. In 2007, we made a $20 million pledge to support Child Health BC, an initiative of BC Children’s Hospital that helps get kids in BC get the care they need, closer to home. Since then, we’ve raised more than $10.7 million toward our goal, and Child Health BC has been able to put this concept into action in a number of communities throughout BC. We are grateful for the amazing commitment and fund raising efforts driven by OFG team members who encourage the generosity of our customers and suppliers.
Darrell Jones, President OFG