Isolation isn’t new for our families.
The need to be in isolation or practising social distancing is new to most of us, but for many of our families that stay at Ronald McDonald House Charities Sydney (RMHCS), it is a way of life.
RMHCS needs your support now more than ever for our vulnerable sick kids and their families during these difficult times. A gift of $40 or anything you can afford, will help continue to keep our doors open 365 days a year. Your support will make such a big difference.
At Ronald McDonald House Charities Sydney (RMHCS), we know very well that isolation isn’t new for our families.
Whether staying at the House in Randwick or using one of our family rooms, parents, carers and sick kids can sometimes feel very isolated.
Many are staying at the House far from their friends, family members and their community and it’s not easy for them, so adding the restrictions placed on everyone through COVID-19 to ensure their vulnerable child is safe, it is so much tougher.
However, we are a great believer that we remain focused on continuing to support our sick kids and families.
This is what RMHCS is about, keeping families together and creating community for them when they are so far from their own.
It’s a place that provides them with more than they thought they would have ever needed. It’s a place that is incredibly grounding and yet incredibly inspiring.
It’s a place that 746 families in the last 12 months alone, have called home whilst their child was being treated at Sydney Children’s Hospital. It is a haven away from the clinical environment for the 4,600 families who have used our family rooms at Sydney Children’s Hospital, Royal North Shore Hospital and Wollongong Hospital.
It’s a place that people like you, can help make a loving home for all the sick kids and their families in need.
We need your help today. Close to 60% of our income comes from people like yourself and we need your support so that we can continue to support these seriously ill children and their families.
With everything that is happening in the world at the moment, these families are even more vulnerable and fragile now as well as being away from their families and friends.
It’s not easy for them.
For children that are being treated for leukaemia, cancer, have had transplants, have auto-immune diseases or are living with cystic fibrosis, isolation is essential for their survival.
A common cold can be life threatening, making the need for isolation no holiday at home.
Bobbi's story
Stephen and his daughter Ashleigh have been staying at RMHCS for more than six months, whilst their daughter and sister, who recently turned 3-years-old Robyn (Bobbi) is receiving treatment for a brain tumour.
During Bobbi's treatment, which is a long and difficult road for little Bobbi and emotionally and physically draining for Stephen and Ashleigh, they have been living away from home at Ronald McDonald House in Randwick, in one of their 4 isolation units (a small self-contained one-bedroom unit with a courtyard).
During their stay they have taken the time to see the positives in what has bought them together.
“More than anything, we have the time to enjoy each other’s company,” said Ashleigh. “I haven’t spent this much time with my dad since I was 15 as I was either working, studying or going out.
Bobbi is such a good baby despite what she is going through and this experience has given us lots of quality time together that we might not have otherwise had. We have an influence on the development of Bobbi every day and all that she learns comes from us. When I’m cooking pasta, I give her a little pot and she puts the pasta, salt and a little bit of water in it and stirs it just like me.”
When I peeked in their unit there was a cubby house made of blankets and chairs and little Bobbi had her own mini dustpan and broom and wanted to help her dad with cleaning the house. “We have created our own routine. I take Bobbi for a walk in her pram as her illness means she is not strong enough to walk and I do a few handyman things here and there when Bobbi is sleeping,” said Stephen.
“Day sleeps with the baby are the best! I never had the time to do that at home. I’m also reading those books that have sat on my bookshelf for so long,” added Ashleigh.
When asked how they keep a 3-year-old entertained in a small area, Steve and Ashleigh said that they have gone back to learning and singing all of the nursery rhymes, play dress ups, look through photos and videos (like all 3 year-olds, Bobbi loves to see images of herself), paints their nails, dance around the house, build cubby houses, involve Bobbi in doing things around the house and just sit on the floor together and play.
This is not what they wanted for little Bobbi, but Steve and Ashleigh make the most of the situation they are in and look for the positives in the time that they get to spend with each other and Bobbi and for the community they have created at the House.
Today, our charity is experiencing a great time of need, with a significant reduction in funding due to the need to cancel many of our face to face fundraising events and a significantly impacted economy.
Our families need you, now more than ever. Will you give a gift today so we can continue to keep our families safe and connected during this critical time and the months and years to come? If you can spare even a small gift, you will be ensuring more families like Bobbi’s keep close together during tough times.
Please donate today
