In January 2006, at just 6 weeks old, my amazing son Jack was diagnosed with a Primitive Neuroectodermal Tumor (PNET), the size of a small orange. Over the course of the next 2 months, he underwent various treatments including surgery to have the tumor removed. Unfortunately, after the initial surgery the tumor grew back, only this time it was more aggressive than before. After many sleepless nights at Southampton Hospital and numerous trips to Basingstoke hospital, we were given the opportunity to take Jack to Naomi House for a respite break. As it turned out, Jack took a turn for the worse and was taken to Naomi House to spend his final few days. In the week that Jack was at Naomi House the nurses and staff were amazing, they couldn't do enough for Jack or us. On the day that Jack passed away, the staff came to our room with paints and coloured card and we made pictures with ours and Jack's handprints. As the day progressed it was clear that Jack was getting steadily worse. I will always remember that day, the sun was shining and there were snow flurries, it was a beautiful day. At around 9pm that night Jack rejected all of his medication. We held onto Jack to the very end.
I know I can never fully repay the time and care the team at Naomi House gave Jack, or the many hundreds of children and parents over the past 10 years. So as my way of saying thank you to them, I'd like to try and raise as much money as possible so that they can continue to help more family's in the future.
Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.
A little bit of what Naomi House and Jacksplace do with all the money raised.
Naomi House and Jacksplace are hospices that provide support to children and young people with conditions that mean they are unlikely to live to become adults. The charity provides care to families and young adults living in communities across the seven counties of Berkshire, Dorset, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Surrey, West Sussex and Wiltshire.
· The charity has two specialist units, Naomi House for children, and Jacksplace for young adults. Each unit is purpose built and offers an appropriate environment for each age group. It costs around £7million a year to run the two units. The charity receives around 10% of its funding from the Department of Health.
· The support given by Naomi House is unique in the central south. It delivers a range of services to help to relieve families from the day to day pressures of looking after a child or young person with a life limiting condition.
· £5 could provide art materials for life-limited children and young people to create treasured memories during their short break at Naomi House
· £25 could fund our music room for a day, so that children and young people, regardless of their ability, can enjoy the pleasure of creating and experiencing music
· £50 could run our sensory room for a day, enabling children and young people from across our region to enjoy having their senses stimulated
· £100 could fund one day in our end of life suite, where a child or young person can stay after they die and where their family can be close by until the funeral
· Bigger gifts could do even more
Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.
