Rockhampton community raises more than $13k for sick 10-week-old baby

A mother and father from Rockhampton have thanked the community for raising more than $13,000 to help their ten-week old daughter as she battles numerous rare health conditions.

The Rockhampton community have pulled together to help save 10-week-old baby Kennedy after she was diagnosed with a rare syndrome. Supplied: Kayla Clarke

When Kayla Clarke and Ricky Siddle picked up their baby girl from hospital, everything seemed normal.
But their entire world was cast into disarray only six days after her birth when they were forced to return to hospital with her due to breathing, eating and sleep issues.
Over the course of more than a month, Kennedy was diagnosed with Pierre Robin Sequence and 22Q11 – a syndrome with more than 180 symptoms including ocular problems, issues with eating and talking, auto-immune disorders and organ abnormalities.

The Rockhampton community have pulled together to help save 10-week-old baby Kennedy after she was diagnosed with a rare syndrome. Supplied: Kayla Clarke

Kayla said her and her partner Ricky Siddle were amazed by the support from the community, who helped raise more than $10,000 in a few short days.
“We were absolutely blown away by the generosity of the community, and of our friends and family.”

“I can’t believe how quickly we nearly got to our target of $16,000.

“From the bottom of our hearts we want to thank everybody for being so generous.

“When you have these complex care children, you need a village – and we are so grateful that our village has stepped up to the plate.”

The Rockhampton community have pulled together to help save 10-week-old baby Kennedy after she was diagnosed with a rare syndrome. Supplied: Kayla Clarke

Helping to take care of a baby while they battle medical conditions is a challenge no parent wants to face.
Kayla said supporting Kennedy was an everyday priority.

“Our world really has changed a lot in the last two months,” Kayla said.
“She’s on permanent oxygen, so we have to live with oxygen in every room of the house.

“She also has a permanent feeding tube that goes down her nose and into her stomach, which we had to learn to insert.
“We’ve had to do some pretty crazy things for two people that are both not medical professionals.”
On top of her twin diagnoses, Kennedy was also found to have Atrial Septal Defect.
“It’s like a heart abnormality,” Kayla said.
“That’s something that she will potentially need to have surgery on this year.”

The Rockhampton community have pulled together to help save 10-week-old baby Kennedy after she was diagnosed with a rare syndrome. Supplied: Kayla Clarke

Kayla said her and her partner Ricky were interested in spreading awareness about the rare 22Q11 syndrome.
“As much as this syndrome isn’t talked about a lot, it does still affect one in 2000 people,” she said.
“We’ve started an Instagram page … we want people to see what our day-to-day looks like, provide information and provide support to other families.

“Hopefully we can find other families in Rockhampton or surrounding areas that have dealt with 22Q11 before – we’d really like to bring awareness to this syndrome.”
Kayla also gave a special shout-out to her mum Sharyn Clarke, who is best known as the owner of Clairview’s Barra Crab Caravan Park.
“She’s part of the reason that our little family is still in one piece.”
“There’s no way we can ever be able to thank her for the sacrifices she has made.
“With Ricky working 7/7 out in the mines, she could see how much care Kennedy required.
“She makes the drive [from Clairview) every fortnight and stays for seven days with us and then goes back and works seven days – she really gets no days off because she is here.”