Event will support SickKids Centre
FUNDRAISER: First Nation mothers float Living Pink Balloon
Posted By VALERIE MACDONALD VMACDONALD@NORTHUMBERLANDTODAY.COM
Posted 6 months ago
The death of one child and another's ongoing treatment for brain cancer have brought two Alderville First Nation mothers together to launch a fundraiser for the SickKids Centre for Brain and Behaviour.
The Living Pink Balloon event will be successful if 500 children and adults each buy a $25 pink T-shirt and come together on the ball diamond at 5555 Minnetonka Rd. on Sept. 5 in the shape of a balloon. This will raise awareness and at least $10,000 for this special research, the women said during a press conference yesterday held at the Alderville First Nation's Learning Centre. The day will also include prizes, draws, barbecue, Native food, a children's area and pony rides.
Tanya Gray's 10-year-old daughter, Hollie, died from a brain aneurysm last September after her parents found her unresponsive and rushed her to hospital. No real symptom of her condition had been apparent, Gray said. Her very active little girl just said that when she lay down her headache would go away. She was ultimately transferred from Northumberland Hills Hospital to Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children and declared brain dead.
"This event is not only for Hollie but also for all those parents of children with unexplainable symptoms who are not getting answers," a media release stated.
Hollie's kidneys, liver and two heart valves were donated to help others, as Gray said she knew her daughter would have wished.
At about the same time, her neighbour, Daryl Crowe, was dealing with her child's health problems. Diagnosed with craniopharyngioma, a cancerous pituitary tumour, in February 2008, Brenna's early symptoms of vomiting and head pain were unexplained even after many trips to hospital. After a third seizure and CT scan, the five-year-old was airlifted to Sick Kids. She has undergone two surgeries, and her last course of chemotherapy ended in March. The tumour grew back once and now it is "wait and see," Crowe said.
Initially, the tumour caused the brain to swell and a shunt was put in to drain it. In the future there could be a host of associated problems from affecting the function of the pituitary glands to eye damage.
Small hospitals are not aware or well educated in this type of problem, Crowe says, and the family was were very close to losing Brenna because of it. Research and education will address this.
The fundraiser to create this giant "Living Pink Balloon" starts with pre-registration and buying tickets for the t-shirts by Aug. 20 so that the shirts can be ordered in time of the Sept. 5 event. This can be done at Scissors Edge and Our House Snack-n-Go in Alderville and at Herbal Magic in the Midtown Mall in Cobourg.
Groups as well as individuals are urged to participate, and donors can purchase a shirt for a child to wear that day - and receive a tax receipt, says organizer Chris Pelletier.
This is a way for the community to give back to Sick Kids and help others, organizers stressed.
Contact e-mails include tanya002@xplornet.com and daryl.crowe@sympatico.ca or call 905-352-2623 or 905-352-2574.
A pre-fundraiser is being held at the home of Chief Jim Bob Marsden, 5374 Roseneath Landing on Aug. 16 from 1 to 4 p. m. For $5 you can enjoy the Sweetgrass Band, food and a silent auction. Bring your lawnchair.
Sign-in time for the Sept. 5 Living Pink Balloon event is from 9 to 11:30 a. m. The balloon will be formed at 12 noon.
