How children’s hospice Hummingbird House helped a Warwick family through their darkest day

On the darkest day a young Queensland family has experienced, a children’s hospice provided the utmost compassion as they prepared to say goodbye to their three-year-old daughter. One family member has channelled their grief in the most beautiful way.

Warwick grandmother Dean Donnelly has channelled the grief of losing her three-year-old granddaughter Rosie to terminal cancer through art.

In 2022 a Southern Downs family’s world was turned upside down when their then two-year-old daughter Rosie was diagnosed with stage 4 neuroblastoma, a rare and aggressive cancer.

Rosie’s mother Vivien Long recalls the heart wrenching Sunday at home in Warwick when they received the news of her diagnosis, sending them straight to Queensland Children’s Hospital.

The diagnosis required Rosie and her family to relocate from Warwick to Brisbane in order to access medical treatment, where they stayed until shortly after her passing in 2023.

“We had to relocate to Brisbane because Rosie couldn’t travel more than 50km from the hospital,” she said.

During her treatment Rosie was given opportunities to return home to Warwick for a short period, where she was reunited with her furry friend and family pet, Charlie.

Warwick mother Vivien Long lost her daughter Rosie to a rare and aggressive form of cancer at just three-years-old. Photo: Supplied

“That was really beautiful and special for her to be able to see her room and her dog Charlie,” Mrs Long said.

“It was a very horrible time and we didn’t know (at the time) it would get more horrible.”

The Long family were hoping to return home to Warwick in winter last year, having planned for Rosie to begin kindergarten in 2024, when her condition quickly worsened.

It was during this time Rosie’s family was introduced to Hummingbird House, a children’s hospice who provides specialised palliative care to both children and their families.

Mrs Long said it was on their darkest day they were met with the utmost compassion of the Hummingbird House staff who allowed the family to unite together in what would be their final goodbye.

“One of the nicest things at Hummingbird House was when we arrived they pushed up beds for Ryan and I next to Rosie’s so we could all be in the same room and huddled up together,” she said.

“It was really beautiful to be able to be so close to her and just hold her, they gave us the opportunity to say goodbye in our own time.”

In her honour when Rosie passed the staff at Hummingbird House stood in a guard of bubbles as she was taken away, a special moment for the little girl who loved blowing bubbles.

Rosie Long's dignified and beautiful spirit are reflected in the artwork her grandmother Dean Doneley created, which is featured in the 2024 Coles Hummingbird House Appeal. Photo: Supplied

Rosie’s parents continued to stay at Hummingbird House in the days following her passing, where they took part in memory making with the art therapists.

“The art therapists had taken impressions of her handprints and her fingerprints, and we made a beautiful painting together using her fingerprints,” Mrs Long said.

“We would never have been able to do that if we weren’t at Hummingbird House.

“They were there through the worst times of our lives, they made the unbearable bearable and did it with so much compassion.”

Rosie will be remembered as a vibrant three-year-old who loved, art, reading, playing on the swing and spending time with her grandmother Dean Donnelly.

Ms Donnelly has eloquently portrayed the colourful spirit of her late granddaughter into artwork featured in the 2024 Coles Hummingbird House Appeal.

Her hummingbird artwork features on donation cards sold during the appeal, a collaboration with Rosie who helped choose the colours and attributes of the bird.

“The hummingbird’s iridescence and transparent wings reflect Rosie’s spirit – it’s dignified and beautiful, just like her,” Ms Donnelly said in a statement.

Ms Donnelly recalled in her statement how Rosie would paint her grandmother’s hand during their art therapy class at Hummingbird House, even in her final days.

“When Rosie was painting my hand, I think she was showing me that when you love someone and create something for them, you do it with all your heart, no matter how you’re feeling,” Ms Donnelly said.

“That’s the message that inspired me to continue painting my Rosie hummingbird after she passed.”

Rosie's mother Vivien Long (L) and grandmother Dean Donnelly (R) with Dean's hummingbird painting which features in the 2024 Hummingbird House appeal. Photo: Contributed

When Rosie’s mother first saw the artwork she was overwhelmed by how it was beautifully captured and described how equally proud the little girl would be of her grandmother’s artwork.

“I think (Rosie) would say ‘it’s beautiful big nanny’,” Mrs Long said.

The care team at Hummingbird House continues to provide Rosie’s family with both physical and emotional support.

Hummingbird House is one of only three children’s hospices in Australia and relies heavily on community fundraising to fill a $2.4m funding gap each year.

In its 11th year, the Coles Hummingbird House Appeal is looking to exceed the 2023 fundraising efforts of $765,000 to ensure families like Rosie’s can receive the dedicated support they need.

Residents in the Southern Downs and state wide can support Hummingbrd House by purchasing a $2 donation card at any coles store from September 18 to October 8 or by donating online.