Calliope girl Alice Morley to ‘talk like a pirate’ for childhood cancer fundraiser
When little Alice Morley’s parents noticed her droopy eyelid was getting worse, they never expected the shock diagnosis a top doctor gave them. Find out more about Alice’s journey.
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A brave young Central Queensland cancer survivor will be talking like a pirate to help raise vital funds for other kids and their families battling illness.
Five-year-old Alice Morley was born with congenital ptosis (presence of a droopy eyelid), however, two years ago her parents noticed the drop was getting worse.
Eventually, severe swelling resulted in Alice’s eye protruding out of her eye socket and following a visit to a GP, an optometrist, and a head of trauma doctor, the family learned she had a tumour around her optic nerve.
The Calliope family was shocked following the diagnosis and relied on organisations such as Childhood Cancer Support while Alice underwent two surgeries and a gruelling 15 rounds of chemotherapy.
The Morleys were provided with free accommodation in South Brisbane during Alice’s entire treatment and are now encouraging locals in Calliope and the Gladstone region to help raise vital funds to support other families facing similar battles.
Alice and her family will be taking part in Talk Like a Pirate Day next Monday (September 19), an initiative launched to help raise awareness of the fundraising effort for CCS.
Alice’s mum, Sian and dad, James said the support from CCS was vital and helped to ease the significant financial burden of keeping a roof over a families head while they focus on the health of a child during cancer treatment.
“We could not comprehend why this was happening to our baby girl,” Mrs Morley said.
“Life is not always fair, and our focus was on how we could help Alice the best we could so she could overcome cancer while providing what was best for our family,” she said.
“The supports they offer to families in these devastating times is amazing, just having a comfortable place to call home throughout Alice’s treatment has been life changing and something that we will be forever grateful for.”
The charity provides families with free short-term and long-term accommodation, as well as patient transport services, psychological and emotional support when they must travel for lifesaving cancer treatment.
Sian and James, who are both teachers, have encouraged their whole school to get behind the event with a number of schools and childcare centres in Calliope having already jumped on board.
CCS staff, Captain Feathersword, the Brisbane Lord Mayor and families affected by cancer, recently took over a Brisbane CityCat to enjoy a fun pirate themed day out.
In Australia, a child is diagnosed with cancer every 14 hours.
Talk Like a Pirate Day was officially launched at the start of September, a date that coincides with the beginning of International Childhood Cancer Awareness month.
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