Good Friday Appeal 2021: Victorians’ generosity shines at Good Friday Appeal
Victorians have given generously to the 90th Good Friday Appeal with a whopping $17,122,879 raised for kids in need.
Good Friday Appeal
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A human chain of kindness — made with links from raided piggy banks, generous workplaces and grateful parents — again stretched across the state, all in the name of supporting a better future for Victoria’s smallest and most vulnerable patients.
By the 11.30pm close, an impressive $17,122,879 had been raised for the Good Friday Appeal, falling short of last year’s record of $18.2m.
After a COVID-enforced hiatus, tin rattlers at traffic lights were back, Marvel Stadium was packed, and phones in the telethon room rang off the hook.
Friday’s 90th Good Friday Appeal, the culmination of a year-long fundraiser, forced Royal Children’s Hospital supporters to get extra creative — and it worked.
The appeal was embraced far and wide — from sheep sales at the Bendigo saleyard, and all-you-can-pick sessions in a sunflower patch in Meredith, to $10,000 in takings from the Corowa op-shop.
Then there was seven-year-old Lachlan’s lemonade stand that raised $2000 in Cranbourne. Another Melbourne youngster, Alexia, raised $2157.40 making and selling badges.
In Garvoc, a 250-person farming town in the state’s far west, locals offered and bid on each other’s services to raise $26,000.
The Good Friday Appeal Auxiliaries — made up of more than 600 mainly mums and grandmother fundraisers across the state — raised more than $656,000 from their year-round events.
The state government kicked off the appeal with a $1m donation, announced by acting Premier James Merlino.
“As a parent, knowing we have one of the leading children’s hospitals is a comfort,” Mr Merlino said.
“That’s what the Good Friday Appeal is all about — us supporting this wonderful institution to make it the best place when we need it for our kids.”
The Good Friday Appeal Charity Home auction achieved a record price to raise the tally by $903,000.
A crowd of about 550 people looked on as the four-bedroom house in Wollert, in Melbourne’s outer north, soared well past the previous benchmark of $860,000, set in 2018.
Epping couple Drage and Zaklina Lazarovski and their daughter, Natasha, were delighted to win the property, which was fully donated by Henley Homes, Villawood Properties and more than 100 tradies and suppliers.
The cherry on top for the family was the fact Ms Lazarovski’s niece, Kristina Acevski, and her husband, Steven, are building a house next door.
GOOD FRIDAY APPEAL CHARITY HOME BREAKS RECORD
“A couple of days ago, we said, ‘that’d be cool’. But I couldn’t believe it today,” Steven said.
Some 28,483 people walked through the gates of Marvel Stadium for the Western Bulldogs-North Melbourne Kick for the Kids clash, but it was not a great day for Kangaroos fans with their heroes going down by a mammoth 128 points as Bulldogs forward Josh Bruce kicked a bag of 10 goals.
At the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, hundreds of families checked into the Teddy Bear Hospital to have medical students deliver care to their children’s beloved teds in exchange for donations.
The appeal raises money for equipment, staff training and medical research to improve diagnosis and treatment for patients like three-year-old Leo Mack.
The Bacchus Marsh boy, who had three open-heart surgeries in his first year of life, will spend Easter in hospital ahead of surgery for a bladder cyst.
“Without those surgeries, his blood wouldn’t pump at all. He loves life now,” Leo’s mum, Amy Mack said.
“It’s an amazing place. Without it, Leo wouldn’t be alive.”
Good Friday Appeal director Rebecca Cowan said the strength of this year’s appeal rested on individual ways Victorians found to contribute.
“We’re incredibly grateful to all Victorians, not only giving this year but for 90 years the community has come together and given generously their time, support and money,” Ms Cowan said.
“Thank you so much for caring for the kids.”
GOOD FRIDAY APPEAL IN ACTION
Ballet dancers, super hero characters and AFL players visited children stuck in their hospital rooms this Easter.
Superman paid a visit to three-year-old Leo Mack, who is awaiting surgery for a cyst on his bladder.
Leo has been a patient at the RCH his entire life and underwent three open heart surgeries before age one.
“Without those surgeries, his blood wouldn’t pump at all. He loves life now. After that third surgery he went from being a very sick baby with feeding tubes, to just an amazing kid,” mum Amy said.
“In that first year I thought I’m going to be left with a very sick child who is going to be fed through a tube forever. And he just amazed me.
“It’s an amazing place. Without it, Leo wouldn’t be alive.”
Other outpatients are visiting the hospital today to catch the action.
The Pender family of five from Portland in the state’s far west was one of them.
They have been in Melbourne since November after three-year-old Annie was diagnosed with leukaemia.
She has also since developed meningitis.
Mum Shauni urged Victorians to contribute what they could to the appeal.
“Absolutely donate today because they are literally saving our child’s life,” Ms Pender said.
“She’s going through a really intense phase, so she’s up and down at the moment and very emotional. It’s really hard.”
Meanwhile, Collingwood forward Mason Cox, who is a regular visitor to the RCH, toured the wards visiting sick kids. He said he was in awe of the history of the appeal.
“Because I’m not from here, I’ve always found it amazing that people are so generous in these kinds of things,” Cox said.
“We don’t really have anything like this back home. It’s amazing how people really buy into it.
“Everyone obviously has different circumstances in their life but being able to help these kids who aren’t in the best way, and to help these kids and their families out, it’s part of the Victorian culture.
“I’ve always respected that you have these things like the Good Friday Appeal; people buy into it and donate these massive amounts of money.
“Every little bit counts, no matter what it is. It’s just a sign of the kind of people here in Victoria, that they’re willing to give their time and money to this, it’s a beautiful thing.”
TEDDY BEAR PATIENTS GET BEST OF CARE
Hundreds of families have checked into the Teddy Bear Hospital at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre to deliver medical care to their children’s beloved teddies.
Doctors were on standby at a series of healthcare stations dedicated to the teddy bears’ medical and emotional well-being where their knee-high owners could leave with their furry friend in tip-top shape for the year.
From music therapy to speech pathology and optometry, families made their way through each station at the hospital where friendly doctors provided teddies with a medical certificate.
Amid the furore at arguably the most dynamic hospital waiting room where Ava, 5, checked her bear’s heartbeat, mum Sandra Burns said she brought her little girl there each year.
“She just loves it,” Ms Burns said.
“It is such a great day and to know how much this helps the hospital is even better.”
Downstairs at the Good Friday Appeal’s tele-room, calls flooded in as dozens of volunteers manned the phones.
Phones constantly rang with generous donors on the line wanting to contribute to this year’s appeal.
Funds dropped significantly when the coronavirus lockdowns halted last year’s fundraiser.
Karen Weaver is one of the appeal’s longest serving call-takers, having taken donations over the phone since 1967.
“I’ve been doing this since it was in the original Channel 7 building,” Ms Weaver said.
“To watch this charity grow into what we see today is really something special.
“The calls will pick up even more over the afternoon.”
Ms Weaver said she hoped this year would bring donation levels back to pre-covid levels.
“Everyone’s on their phones these days. Whether they donate online or give us a call, every bit helps,” she said.
STATE GOVERNMENT DONATES $1M
The state government has launched the Good Friday Appeal with a $1 million donation.
Acting Premier James Merlino announced the donation after a tour of the Royal Children’s Hospital with his eldest daughter Sophie, 13.
He said he now passed the baton to the Victoria public with the challenge to give what they could on Friday.
“This is a cherished Easter tradition for 90 years,” said Mr Merlino.
“As a parent, knowing we have one of the leading children’s hospitals is a comfort.
“Speaking for Dan and Kath, they’ve needed the support and expertise of the brilliant staff working at the Royal Children’s Hospital for their children. That’s what the Good Friday Appeal is all about — us supporting this wonderful institution to make it the best place when we need it for our kids.
“I want to appeal to all Victorians to dig deep; whether that’s $5, $100 of $500.
“We know last year’s appeal was impacted significantly by covid, which impacted the ability of all Victorians to donate generously.”
Mr Merlino said Premier Daniel Andrew was on track with his recovery.
“Daniel’s going well. Not well enough to be here today,” he said.
“Visiting the Royal Children’s Hospital is something Dan does every single year. He is still in recovery.
“His doctors are happy with his progress. It doesn’t require surgery, but a long period of recovery.
“Doctors are encouraging him to walk around and move. But it’s going to be that six-week period.”
As the tally broke through the first $500,000 by 11am, Good Friday Appeal director Rebecca Cowan thanked Victorians for getting the 90th appeal off to a strong start, with everyone finding their own creative way to raise money this.
“We’re incredibly grateful to all Victorians, not only giving this year but for 90 years the community has come together and given generously their time, support and money. Thank you so much for caring for the kids.
“It’s been a particularly challenging year, particularly for Victorians through covid. But the fact we’re back out here today, the community has dug deep. We’re so grateful for their support.
“Especially through Covid people have had to be even more creative than they have been previously.”
SONNY GETS A SECOND CHANCE AT LIFE
Since a rare kidney condition forced his entrance into the world three months early, it has been all hands on deck to save Sonny Grossman.
Good Friday was supposed to be the first day Kim Spencer and Danny Grossman would wake up with their newborn.
Instead Sonny has spent his entire life in the Royal Children’s Hospital.
It was a textbook pregnancy up until about 20 weeks when fluid started to collect around Sonny.
By 28 weeks and the fluid build up was almost unbearable, doctors decided they had to drain some of it, taking 1.4L the first time and just three days later another 1.6L.
But after a few hours of monitoring Kim went into labour.
“I knew what that pain was straight away. It was my second child,” she said.
“I was pretty terrified in that moment. You know preterm labour is a risk. But you never think it’s going to be you.”
On January 11, Sonny arrived weighing 1.15kg. It quickly became clear his kidneys weren’t working properly and he was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition called Bartter syndrome.
“The kidneys filter water get rid of all the stuff you don’t need, and keep hold of the stuff you do need,” neonatologist Ruth Armstrong said.
“His kidneys are less able to hold onto water, and the water then is more able to freely pass through.
“This can be life threatening, particularly if it goes unrecognised. Babies can become very dehydrated very quickly”
Medication has helped stabilise him but the Victorian public also played a part in Sonny’s care.
He spent most of the first part of his stay living in one of the infant radiant warmer cots, which were bought through money raised from the Good Friday Appeal.
Sonny needs to gain more weight on top of his current 2.5kg before he can look to go home.
“It’s such a strange situation to have a 12 week old baby and not know what they do at night time,” said Mr Grossman.
“That’s why we’re desperate to get him here so we can have a normal family life.”
APPEAL CASH GOES TO ‘MEDICAL EXCELLENCE’
There is a mantra commonly referenced by Royal Children’s Hospital supporters, which fuels their work.
“We often say governments fund good hospitals, and philanthropy takes them to being great hospitals,” said Sue Hunt, chief of the RCH Foundation.
As the trustee for money raised through the Good Friday Appeal, Ms Hunt said while the hospital set the priorities for what added-extras they needed, the foundation worked to keep the allocation of fundraising dollars directed towards where it will make transformational differences to the lives of children.
“Supporters can be really confident that the money is directed towards medical excellence,” she said.
“It’s not directed towards the hospital’s day to day activities, it about the way we can support care initiatives, research and equipment that can take the hospital from being a good hospital, to a great hospital.”
This year the Good Friday Appeal is celebrating a significant 90-year milestone.
It represents 90 years of the community generously giving to support The Royal Children’s Hospital.
Since its beginnings, the Good Friday Appeal has raised $381 million, funding leading-edge research, state of the art equipment, leadership & training and patient and family care.
The collective impact of the projects the community has funded across all areas of the hospital has touched the lives of countless children within Victoria, Australia and internationally.
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