SEE PAGE 4 FOR DETAILS

Pauline’s GiftChristmas Miracle

Join our Team

Chaplains become overnight celebrities

Also in this issue...

SPRING 2015YOUR FREE QUARTERLY NEWSFEED

Members of our chaplaincy team have become overnight celebrities following the success of the BBC Two series Children’s Hospital: The Chaplains, screened at the end of last year.

The six part series highlighted the spiritual, emotional and practical help our chaplains offer to children, parents and staff.

Over a million viewers tuned in weekly to follow the stories of some of our brave families and the support they receive from the multi faith chaplaincy team.

TURN TO PAGE 3

PAGE 5 PAGE 7 PAGE 8

T WO 0121 333 8506 fundraising@bch.org.uk bch.org.uk

It’s a brand new year and a brand new look for The Red Balloon. We want to bring you even more stories from our amazing hospital and share more exciting fundraising news, so we’re making The Red Balloon bigger and better than ever before.

We’ve also enclosed a book of tickets for our Big Spring Raffle, giving you the chance to win a host of fantastic prizes including a kindly donated family holiday to Spain. Tickets cost £1 each. Please return all stubs by Monday 30 March as the draw will take place on Thursday 2 April. All proceeds will support our Let Us Play Appeal. For more tickets please visit our online shop www.bch.org.uk/store or call 0121 333 8506.

Please return any unsold tickets to: Freepost RRJU-RUSX-JEEU, Fundraising Team, Birmingham Children’s Hospital, PO Box 12008 Birmingham B4 6WZ.

Good luck!

Norwich had gorillas, Bristol had Gromits and this summer over 100 giant owls will be swooping into Birmingham as part of a massive public art event which intends to raise valuable funds to support our hospital.

For 10 weeks, The Big Hoot will turn Birmingham into a virtual aviary with a host of owls landing not only in the city centre but across the wider Birmingham region, including Sutton Coldfield and Kings Heath.

Standing tall at 165cm (5 ft 5 inches) in height, each owl will be designed by a local artist and funded by a host of corporate sponsors from across the Midlands. It is hoped residents and visitors to the city will follow the trail that links the 100 owls together and discover areas of

Birmingham which they may never have explored before.

At the end of the 10 week trail, the owls will be auctioned off with all proceeds coming to the hospital.

For more information or to get involved visit www.thebighoot.co.uk.

We are set to give our front entrance a brand new makeover and there’ll be a new series of research studies taking place. This will include a high tech

What a HOOT!

New for 2015

Artist submission: The hoot from the 60’s by Jenny Leonard

0121 333 8506

bch.org.uk

fundraising@bch.org.uk

BirminghamChildrensHospital

Bham_Childrens

To celebrate over 150 amazing years of Birmingham Children’s Hospital, every edition will take a look back at some of the key milestones that have made us into one of the world’s leading paediatric hospitals of today.

Celebrating our HistoryIn 1935, boys and girls from the Children’s Hospital Brick

League – a group of 1,798 children who fundraised for the hospital for over 20 years – raised over £9,233 from various activities such as making and selling jam marmalade, cakes, sweets, lavender bags, kettle and iron holders.

80 Years Ago:

Louise McCathieDirector of Fundraising

What’s your scoop?

Do you have any fundraising stories or ideas? Please get in touch – we’d love to

hear from you! project, funded by the Wellcome Trust, with McLaren, Isansys and two local universities which will see doctors in the cardiac wards using Formula 1 technology to help identify cardiac arrests before they happen.

Plus there is also another major primetime TV series in the pipeline all about us which will celebrate our world-class care as well as showcasing the courage and resilience of our children and their families. Watch out for this at the end of the year.

This year is sure to be another fantastic year for our hospital.

Welcome

SPRING2015

T HREE0121 333 8506 fundraising@bch.org.uk bch.org.uk

“I have to admit that we have been recognised outside the hospital” laughs Paul who has been a senior chaplain at Birmingham Children’s Hospital for the past 12 years. “One of my colleagues was even stopped outside a supermarket toilet! It’s not something one expects as a chaplain, but we are getting used to it”.

Paul manages a team of chaplains representing major world faiths including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, Sikhism and Buddhism. Both he and his colleagues have been thrilled, if a little overwhelmed, by the response to the series and are keenly aware of the benefits that their new found fame has brought both to the chaplaincy service and the hospital as a whole.

The series followed a number of children and their families dealing with the difficult, often highly emotional realities of hospital life and captured the very special relationships that they developed with the chaplaincy team.

This included two year old Wilf Matthews who had spent almost all of his short life on our Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). Cameras followed Wilf, his mum, dad and sister as they took a trip out of the hospital to the seaside. Sadly, Wilf passed away just before his third birthday, but this special little boy had a huge impact on everyone who knew and loved him.

“We’ve just been so pleased by how well the programmes presented religious and spiritual care – the appreciation shown to the chaplaincy by children and families really came across” says Paul. “I was concerned how families and kids would take to being

filmed but they were only too keen to share their stories. The series showcased the very best of the

hospital and the incredible courage of our patients and those who love them.”

The chaplaincy holds regular acts of worship, runs activities for children and families and supports over 100 members of staff every month on a one-

to-one basis and through reflection groups. The team also deals with over 1,000 episodes of bereavement counselling a year.

PICU Family Support Workers Sally Roberts and Ellie Willis provide practical and emotional support to children like Wilf and their families. Both trained nursery nurses they work alongside medical and nursing staff to ensure that life on intensive care is as normal – and as much fun – as possible.

What does a Family Support Worker do? It’s our job to ensure that the journey through PICU is as smooth as possible for our patients and their families. We deal with practical issues such as accommodation and financial support and we also try to make sure that our children are occupied and stimulated. People often assume that children on PICU can’t play but often our patients are responsive to sound and light so sensory stimulation is really important.

Viewers of Children’s Hospital: the Chaplains saw staff organise a visit to the seaside for Wilf Matthews. How difficult is it to arrange trips like this? When children are life-limited we cannot express enough the importance of making the most of every moment. To take a ventilator to a beach is by no means an easy task and had to be planned extremely well, but we worked closely with KIDS (Intensive Care and Decision Support) to make sure it happened.

As well as the beach trip, we were able to provide a number of magical moments for Wilf and his family including a party on a big red bus and a weekend camping on the intensive care unit in a tent.

PICU sometimes becomes home to these families so having “normal” experiences is vital. It has been an absolute honour to get to know the Matthews family and they will remain in our hearts forever.

How have our fundraising supporters helped your work? We’ve had a lot of support from fundraisers. Donations have helped us to buy toys and also funded state-of-the-art sensory equipment that makes a huge difference to the children. We also have a fund so that we can celebrate birthdays, Christmas and other special occasions, just as you would at home.

What’s the best thing about your job? It’s a very varied job and the bond we build with our families is incredibly strong. Being part of their journey – whatever the outcome – is a

huge privilege.

SECOND INTERVIEW

Ellie Willis and Sally Roberts

Chaplains Charm the NationRev Paul Nash, who leads our chaplaincy team, is used to being recognised on our wards. Famed for his cheerful, child friendly shirts he is well known to staff and patients alike. But recently Paul has been getting used to a whole new level of recognition following the screening of the BBC Two series Children’s Hospital: The Chaplains.

“I was concerned how families and kids would take to being filmed but they were only too keen to share their stories.”

Wilf Matthews

Wilf and his mum Jo enjoy the seaside

FOUR 0121 333 8506 fundraising@bch.org.uk bch.org.uk

1st Prize: A fantastic family holiday to Spain

Plus lots of other amazing prizes to be won

Draw on 2nd April 2015

SpringRaffleBIG

For more information, or to buy tickets online, please visit

www.bch.org.uk/storePlayers must be aged 16 or older. Promoter: Birmingham Children’s Hospital, Steelhouse Lane, Birmingham, B4 6NH.

Registered under Small Society Lottery License, Region No. 6746, Birmingham City Council.

1st Prize kindly donated by Monarch Airlines & BDR

For details of your nearest venue taking part, please visit

www.bandagelive.org.uk

BandAge Live, a weekend of live music, is an opportunity to support Birmingham Children’s Hospital by staging your very own music event or by popping along to an event near you between Friday 6th and Sunday 8th March.

We aim to get as many music events as possible set up in the West Midlands over one weekend, in a live music take-over to raise money for our hospital. Last year 3,500 people joined in and we raised over £5,000!So, if you play or sing in a band or know any venues who would like to take part, please get in touch with Katie West by email kate.west@bch.nhs.uk or telephone 0121 333 8497.

Be part of

our live music

takeover!

06 03 15 08 03 15

We’re So Close

Launched back in 2012 the appeal aimed to raise a whopping £4 million to fund a brand new state-of-the-art oncology centre. And thanks to your amazing support, we are almost there. We’ve been totally overwhelmed by the donations we have received from our community, local businesses, schools and charitable trusts. In fact, some of our most eager fundraisers have been our patients themselves and their incredible families. Four-year-old Persian Bristoll raised £135 by taking part in the Great Birmingham Mini Run in October. Persian, who was one of the stars of the appeal, was diagnosed with kidney cancer in April 2013 and spent long periods of time on Ward 15 – our current cancer ward.

Mum Kate, who also raised funds by having her head shaved, said: “Having a child with cancer is probably one of the scariest things that can ever happen to a parent. I felt incredibly grateful that

Persian was cared for by such a great team.

Happily he is now on the road to recovery and as a family we are so glad to be able to help the appeal for a new cancer centre. I would

ask everyone to try to do something to support this incredible cause to help other children going through the same ordeal.”

With your help our brand new cancer unit can become a reality very soon – and every penny counts! If you’d like to hold an event or make a donation to our Children’s Cancer Centre Appeal please contact the fundraising team on 0121 333 8506 or visit www.bch.org.uk.

Plucky fundraiser Persian Bristoll

“I would ask everyone to try to do something to support this incredible cause to help other children going through the same ordeal.”

Great news from our Children’s Cancer Centre Appeal. We are now just £20,000 away from our final target.

SPRING2015

FIVE0121 333 8506 fundraising@bch.org.uk bch.org.uk

Thanks to you, since April 2014 we have raised a whopping

£5.6 millionThis absolutely smashes last year’s grand total – all of which will go a long way to supporting all our children and their families.

Fundraising High for 2014

Pet Therapy

Christmas Transplant Miracle for Two Frozen Fans

Whilst our infection control policy normally doesn’t allow canine friends into the hospital we do make an exception for our Pets As Therapy (PAT) dogs.

PAT dogs Holly, Cassie and Candy are regular visitors to our Play Department where they receive lots of love and attention from children and staff alike.

Pets As Therapy is a national charity that provides therapeutic visits by volunteers with their own friendly, temperament tested and vaccinated dogs and cats, who bring everyday life a bit closer to children who have to spend long periods of time in hospital.

Our patients often miss their much loved pets and being able to play an unflappable and very friendly pooch is something they really look forward to.

Holly’s owner Flo Sinclair said: “It has been said that walking into a room with a PAT dog or cat is like waving a magic wand. The dogs love contact with both

patients and parents and it is a joy to see the children smiling and happy when they pay them a visit.” To find out more about Pets as Therapy visit www.petsastherapy.org.

Over Christmas, every ward and department in our hospital was decorated in the theme of the popular Disney film Frozen.

But for two very special patients the magic of the movie didn’t stop with baubles and bunting, instead the girls with names almost identical to the lead characters from the hit film, received new kidneys from relatives just in time for Christmas. Frozen fans, Elsie Wesley, three, and Anna Harrison, five, both needed organ donations after their kidneys stopped working, due to separate rare disorders. Elsie was born with branchio-oto-renal syndrome which affects just one in 40,000 people, while Anna was diagnosed with juvenile nephronophthisis last year, affecting one in 50,000. Both girls had to undergo major surgery in order to have a new healthy kidney implanted. Elsie received hers from her father, Neil, 35, and Anna from her grandmother, June Cantor, 64. The pair have now become close friends, which is all the more magical given that their names almost exactly match those of the movie’s main characters - Anna and Elsa. Transplant patients Anna and Elsie

Our PAT dogs always receive lots of love and attention

“...walking into a room with a PAT dog or cat is like waving a magic wand.”

www.bch.org.uk/lottery

Amazing things happen when you play

Promoter: Birmingham Children’s Hospital, Steelhouse Lane, Birmingham, B4 6NH. www.bch.org.uk. Registered Charity Number 1074850. Licensed by Birmingham City Council - Registration No. 6746

Weekly Draw with

amazing star prize of £25,000

You must be 16 or over to enter

and a resident of Great Britain

1Only £1 per play: Help Birmingham Children’s Hospital

every time you play!

We love to welcome visitors to our hospital – and some of our favourites are of the four-legged variety.

SIX 0121 333 8506 fundraising@bch.org.uk bch.org.uk

www.bch.org.uk/greatbirminghamrun

18th October

2015

Let a child you love be the reason you run for Birmingham Children’s Hospital

Great news for cake lovers! It’s time to pull on your pinnies and whip out your whisks because our Great Cake Bake is back.

Throughout April we want bakers of all ages to show off their culinary creations and “raise some dough” (sorry!) for our wonderful hospital by holding a bake sale.

Whether it’s at school, in the office or at home for friends, there has never been a better time to showcase your baking brilliance. Everyone loves a bit of cake, so even if you’re not a budding Mary Berry or a potential Paul Hollywood, your homemade treats are certain to be a hit. We’ll even forgive the odd soggy bottom!

For more information and to download your Great Cake Bake pack visit www.bch.org.uk/greatcakebake.

Back by popular demand, the seventh Zombie Walk will take place in Birmingham on Saturday 13 June.

Join over two thousand ‘walking dead’ on judgement day and take to the streets to once again channel your inner ghoul as you weave in and out of the back streets of Birmingham. Simply don your scariest attire and most blood-curdling make-up and dig deep in your pockets to help us to raise valuable funds.

For more information on when the chaos will erupt and to register your interest visit www.bch.org.uk/zombies.

Let Us Play

Great Cake Bake

Be Prepared the Zombies are Coming!

Every year we are lucky enough to receive thousands of toy donations which are given out to the children who visit and stay at our hospital. But what we actually need is playrooms.

The existing spaces are too tired and cluttered to allow the children and young people treated here the opportunity to play – just like children should.

Our Let Us Play Appeal intends to create bright and spacious spaces that are filled with awesome things that will make each child’s stay in hospital a little better – whether that’s games to help parents distract their child, or a state-of-the-art sound system that will allow children to escape the noise of buzzing machinery.

We need your support to reach our fundraising target of £200,000 which will help us transform playrooms across the hospital.

Getting involved is easy. For as little as £20 you could help bring a cinema experience into the hospital, giving children something they can do with

other patients or friends and family – complete with tickets, popcorn, giant drinks and dimmed lights. £70 will set us up with a book club so that the children could enjoy reading together with friends in a group. £120 will allow children to express their thoughts and feelings on a bespoke drawing wall.

Simply visit our website

www.bch.org.uk/letusplay

and choose from the ‘play’ list of gifts available or text

HAPPY to 70030 to donate £4.

Did You Know?• Our oldest patient was a metabolic clinic outpatient, who was under our care

until they were 80 years old. It is extremely rare for us to care for someone of this age, but Birmingham Children’s Hospital had the resources and skills to support their rare illness.

• We carry out approximately 13,000 operations every year.

Renal patient Keziah Reid shows off her baking talents

SPRING2015

SEVEN

To be in with the chance of winning simply complete the wordsearch and send your entry back by 30 April to our editorial office: The Red Balloon Spring 2015 Competition, Fundraising Department, Birmingham Children’s Hospital, Steelhouse Lane, Birmingham, B4 6NH.

Name: .................................................................................................................................................................

Address: .............................................................................................................................................................

................................................................................................................................................................................

Telephone Number: .....................................................................................................................................

Email: ..................................................................................................................................................................

Tick if you would like to receive further information from Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity

Words to Find:1. Fundraising2. Paediatric3. Healthcare4. Admissions5. Cardiology6. Transplant7. Neurology8. Hospital9. Children

10. Oncology11. Dialysis12. Charity13. Surgery14. Patient15. Surgeon16. Doctor17. Kidney18. Nurse

Pauline’s Lasting GiftLast year, Pauline Wilkes left a gift to us in her will, as a thank you for the care her daughter Julie received throughout her childhood. Here Julie tells us why she is so proud of her mum and why she also plans to leave a life-changing legacy to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

“In May 1955, two months after I was born, I was diagnosed with a tumour in my windpipe. I was admitted to Birmingham Children’s Hospital and spent the next two years of my life there. Thanks to the dedication of the doctors and nurses I survived against the odds.

“On visiting days, my mum had to take three buses from our home in Kings Heath, to see me. I often think that she must have been exhausted worrying about me and looking after my older sister as well.

“When I was seven years old I was admitted again after suffering a ruptured appendix and again when I was 10 years old to have teeth removed, because the radiation treatment for my throat had stopped the roof of my mouth growing properly. My appointments actually carried on until I was 21 years old. Not surprisingly, our family felt we owed a lot to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

“Throughout her life my mum spoke of her love and admiration for the hospital. We always knew that she planned to leave a gift in her will. It is her legacy for future generations – and our whole family is really proud of that.”

Julie now lives in Norfolk with her husband and has two grown-up children. She still has a strong connection to Birmingham Children’s Hospital and is especially interested in the impact the charity is making in improving the hospital environment, parent accommodation and support for patients and their families.

Julie added: “Nowadays parents are encouraged to stay with their children in hospital – but that wasn’t the case in the 1950’s. I’m sure this must help children to recover and maintain a sense of belonging to a family.

“I am so proud of mum’s legacy and I plan to follow her example by leaving a gift in my will that will help the staff to continue their wonderful work”.

We’d like to thank Julie for sharing her story. To find out more about leaving a gift in your will please contact us at: 0121 333 8506 or fundraising@bch.org.uk or visit: www.bch.org.uk/gifts.

G C C Y S H I H K A E S R A A

P N I H T U L T O Y N N O A N

R A I R I I R E E H A O I U G

T O T S T L R G O I L I R I N

R O T I I A D A E I C S D Y H

P I E C E A I R H R E S L G R

O F E L O N R D E C Y I L O A

H D A T H D T D E N D M D L L

O N C O L O G Y N A N D C O E

D I A L Y S I S A U P A R R O

Y G O L O I D R A C F E O U R

A G H H T E R A C H T L A E H

T R A N S P L A N T C M N N P

S U R G E O N Y E N D I K R G

A I P H T O H O S P I T A L I

Win

0121 333 8506 fundraising@bch.org.uk bch.org.uk

I Birmingham Children’s Hospital because…

“The dedication of the staff saved my little girl’s life – I can’t thank them enough” John Woods, Dudley

“I believe without them my little boy would not be here today. I owe them for saving my world”Sarah Murray, Kingshurst Birmingham

Tell us why you love Birmingham Children’s Hospital by emailing

fundraising@bch.org.uk

We are giving five lucky readers the chance to get their hands on one of our popular grey zip-up hoodies worth £29.95.

Brave three-year-old patient completed last year’s Junior and Mini event

If you need inspiration to don your running shoes, look no further than three-year-old heart patient Jessica Weaver.

Jessica was born with pulmonary

atresia with a ventricular septal defect – a hole in her heart. At just eight days old, she underwent open chest surgery to put a stent in and when she was 18 months old she had open heart surgery.

In September 2013, instead of putting Jessica through more open heart surgery,

keyhole surgery was used to insert a shunt in the valve which had opened again – essentially saving her life.

Almost a year after that operation, Jessica donned her Birmingham Children’s Hospital running vest and ran her longest race, the Great Birmingham Junior and Mini event, to raise money for our hospital. Jessica’s mum Kathryn said: “Jessica was significantly smaller than the other three-year-olds taking part in the event, so it was more of a challenge for her as she ran out of puff quicker. But she knew she was doing it for the hospital and for the doctors and nurses who had cared for her.”

Join Our Team

Mask your fears and put some pow into your fundraising as we are looking for superheroes to take part in our newest abseil on Saturday 7 March.

If your kids think you are braver than Superman, or you want to try your hand at being a real-life Spiderman than channel your inner superhero and take on the heights of Birmingham’s landmark 100ft Fort Dunlop building.

For more information and to pay your £30 registration fee visit www.bch.org.uk/abseil.

Abseil Challenge

Great Birmingham RunBack by popular demand on Sunday 18 October is the Great Birmingham Run – a half marathon which takes in some of the city’s most iconic sights including the Bullring, Cadbury World in Bournville and Edgbaston Cricket Ground.

Last year we had an incredible team of over 1,000 people running for Birmingham Children’s Hospital that together raised a whopping £245,000.

This money went to a wide number of areas across the hospital, including buying “Glideaway” beds to make sure mums and dads can stay with their child throughout the night; and a special syringe pump which provides continuous pain relief medication in small doses, helping some of our poorliest children sleep throughout the night.

Great Birmingham 10kIf the thought of a half marathon is one step too far for you, why not join our team for the first ever Great Birmingham 10k on Sunday 3 May. This brand new event will also take place in the city centre and participants can walk, jog or run it.

Great Birmingham Junior and MiniIt’s an event for all the family as the popular Great Birmingham Junior and Mini event has moved from October to Sunday 3 May, to coincide with the new 10k challenge, meaning your little (and not so little) ones can also take part, making it a great day out for all the family.

So, help us make a difference this year and join our team. All the money you raise will go straight towards giving our children and their families the most comfortable experience possible and continue to make Birmingham Children’s Hospital a centre of paediatric excellence that the whole region relies on.

0121 333 8506 fundraising@bch.org.uk bch.org.uk

Did you know one in

eight children in the West Midlands will be treated at

our hospital?

There’s never been a better time to let your feet do the talking, as we’ve got three fantastic running events for you to get involved with this year – whether you are a novice or a pro!

For more information or to sign up to one of our events visit www.bch.org.uk/events.

EVENTS

For the first time ever, we are joining forces with four other hospitals in Birmingham to take our fundraising to new heights. The Birmingham Hospital’s Snowdon Challenge will see us, Birmingham Women’s Hospital, Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham come together on Saturday 9 May to take on the largest mountain in England and Wales – Mount Snowdon. Scale the heights of this 3,560 ft mountain and conquer Snowdon as a family, with friends or on your own, while at the same time raising valuable funds for Birmingham Children’s Hospital. If you would like to join our Snowdon team visit www.bch.org.uk/snowdon.

Summit to Aim For

EIGHT

Jessica in 2012

Jessica in 2014