, the Barnsley-based chilled food manufacturers, chose to fundraise for CHSF with a Cake Day.

Area Manager Laura Killeen summarised why they chose CHSF for this event:

We decided to raise funds for the Children’s Heart Surgery Fund because we had a member of staff here who gave birth to a beautiful little baby boy who had several problems in his first few days.   Due to complications her baby had to undergo major surgery on his heart at only ten days old – and he is now a fighting fit healthy 6-month old.   We wanted to celebrate his health and thank the team at Children’s Heart Surgery fund for making it a success.

A huge thank you to all at Freshpak!

ran a fundraising auction inspired by son Cody:

My little lad had been diagnosed with Gorlin-Goltz syndrome – he had a tumour inside his heart and underwent a 10 hour operation to remove 90% of it.   The operation which went well as we got told there was a 4/10 chance of losing him.   We would like to thank every single person involved, especially Ward 51, the staff and most of all Mr Jaber for doing the operation.

A huge thank you to everyone concerned!

Lucy Dart

, family and friends have clubbed together in a variety of ways this year for CHSF.

The immediate family brought little Arthur into Oxford Place to tell us all about it:

Last October our baby boy Arthur was diagnosed with TGA at 1 day old. Since we came home after his successful surgery, we, along with a group of fantastic family and friends have raised money to give back to CHSF for all that they did for us. The main event was the Leeds 10K in July where 14 of us ran for team Arthur!

And last but not least,

completed the outdoor obstacle challenge Yorkshire Warrior in aid of our charity, and told us why:

CHSF is a charity that is important to us as Matt’s son, Isaac (who is also Dan’s nephew), underwent surgery to repair a VSD at Leeds General Infirmary back in July.   We wanted to support the charity to show how grateful we are for the care Isaac received.

October brings around another fantastic Fundraiser of the Month – and this time it’s the Warner family.  They have been inspired by daughter Ebony to take on numerous personal challenges and organise events for CHSF, and are very well-deserving recipients of this month’s accolade. Well done!We asked mum Mandy what inspired them to fundraise for CHSF…

We think back to the day we were given the news of our baby girl’s heart diagnosis – nothing prepares you for that.

 

Ebony was diagnosed with an AVSD shortly after birth in Nov 2016 – we remember confiding in a friend of ours whose little boy had just gone through a similar ordeal and she told us about the amazing support of CHSF.

 

We often think of the quote we found on the internet “I understand you’re not a CHD parent so spreading awareness isn’t a priority, but the day before my child’s diagnosis, I wasn’t a CHD parent either” and this rings so true.

 

It’s a real shame that it takes something to happen to you as a family to identify what level of support is out there – these amazing charities that go above and beyond, that have our backs at such a vulnerable time.

 

The thing that stuck out the most to us….as we sat by our daughter’s bed side at the most vulnerable and fragile time of her little life, and as we stared at the numbers on the monitors next to her… is that this fantastic equipment that was tracking our daughter’s recovery, was all funded by CHSF.

 

Thank you for letting us be a family, providing the much-appreciated accommodation to enable us to both sit by our baby girl’s bedside day and night whilst she began her journey to recovery.

In September 2017 I took to the skies in my first skydive – this challenge was huge but as an individual who likes a challenge I was keen to do this and all for a cause so very close to us. Ebony’s Auntie Hayley and Uncle Nathan surprised us and joined in to raise funds for their niece – together we raised a whopping £4,439.00.

 

In July 2019, marking Ebony’s 1- year heart anniversary, we came together as a family to mark the occasion in a special way, with amazing support from our friends and local community. We held a Charity Family Fun Day in our local village hall. This event was a huge success and meant everything to us. Together with Ebony’s daddy’s birthday fundraiser we raised a huge £4,033.00.

 

And in September, I ran my first ever half marathon when I took part in the SimplyHealth Great North Run 2019. I never imagined running this, I didn’t think I was capable, but the help of a good friend and having our beautiful heart warrior waiting at the finish line gave me the determination. Through more amazing donations from our wonderful family, friends and colleagues, together we raised a fantastic £1,050.00.

And finally we asked whether there was any advice Mandy would give to other fundraisers…

Be proud of what you achieve… CHSF appreciate every single penny we raise in supporting hearts for life.

 

Fundraising really doesn’t have to be big and bold, there are so many ways you can work a fundraiser around your commitments: cake stalls, Wear Red, organised walks etc are just some of the ways you can support this amazing charity.

 

From the bottom of our hearts, I’m sure we speak for many people when we say, thank you CHSF for the love and care you show and your continued hard work, dedication and commitment in making this cause the success it is today.

#FundraisingFriday is a time of celebration, where we commemorate the fantastic fundraisers raising vital donations and awareness for Children’s Heart Surgery Fund. This week it’s an entire club!

Worksop Cricket and Sports Club: Fundraising for Charlie

Charlie’s mum Julie Taylor tells us the back story:

Charlie has had 2 open heart surgeries for complex CHD as well as other investigations. We will always be forever grateful to the Leeds Congenital Heart Unit for the miracles they have worked on Charlie and we are delighted to be able to support this amazing charity that are an integral part of the Leeds success with everything they do to help families like us. When the cricket club adopted Children’s Heart Surgery Fund as the year’s charity we were delighted!

And here’s what the club says…

Club Manager Shirley tells us:

Charlie has been a part of our ‘cricket family’ since he was born, with his dad being a big part of our cricket team. We have followed his ups and downs and we are so pleased at how well he is now thanks to what everyone did for him at Leeds General Infirmary. He’s definitely a little star down at Worksop cricket club.

We have had collection tins in the bar area all year. We organised a charity fashion show, a night of music with a band ‘The Crashers’ playing, and Charlie’s sister Brooke did a sponsored cartwheel around the cricket field. We are over the moon with the amount of money we have been able to raise for this wonderful charity.

Charlie’s godfather Adam Valente ran the Doncaster Half Marathon for Children’s Heart Surgery Fund, and says:

I decided to support Children’s Heart Surgery Fund as it’s very close to my heart. Being able to raise money for this amazing charity is an honour. My godson Charlie was very poorly and you were there to help him on his way to recovery. You helped to provide fantastic care not only for Charlie, but for his parents Chris and Julie who needed more support than ever through that difficult time. I am grateful for all that you did for them.

And the final word goes to mum Julie who adds:

If it wasn’t for Children’s Heart Surgery Fund providing us with accommodation while Charlie has spent weeks at a time in hospital I don’t know what we would have done! You do fantastic work and we are honoured to help raise vital funds. Keep doing what you are doing, because you are doing a wonderful job.

This #FundraisingFriday please give a massive round of applause to Baby Bunnies Doncaster for their wonderful fundraising in memory of brave heart warrior Isobel Wigglesworth ❤️

Baby Bunnies: Garden Party

Nichola, owner of Baby Bunnies said:

“When I’d heard the sad news that my next door neighbour’s baby Isobel had passed away I really didn’t know what I could say or do to help the family. A loss of a baby is just heartbreaking.” “I do an annual garden party so I approached Rachel and Ben a few weeks after Isobel’s death saying I would like to do something in Izzy’s memory, and for the family to choose a charity. They chose Children’s Heart Surgery Fund (as the charity had been absolutely amazing when Izzy was going through her treatment for heart surgery.)”

“When I announced we would be doing fundraising this year for CHSF the families of Doncaster were so supportive and really touched by Isobel’s story. Donations from businesses in Doncaster where brilliant. I also set up bonus balls and raffles before the event.” “The garden party was held at Doncaster Deaf School on the 1st August. The sun shone all day and an amazing grand total was raised of £2000 for CHSF as well as another £1000 for Yorkshire Air Ambulance!” “Now each year when the garden party is held there it will be a special reminder of Isobel Wigglesworth – the baby with a big heart.” 

Here we are, in September already and with it comes an amazing new Fundraiser of the Month – Sarah Hardy! Sarah, inspired by Heart Warrior Charlotte, has consistently gone above and beyond for our charity and very much deserves this accolade!

Sarah tells us a bit about her family’s story and who and what inspires her to fundraise for CHSF…

Our daughter, Charlotte, was diagnosed with an atrial septal defect (ASD) just after her first birthday in 2012. We first found out she had a problem when she was admitted to hospital with a bug. A young doctor was doing her observations during the night and heard a heart murmur. We were referred to see the paediatrician, who then referred us to Leeds.

We first met Dr Dom at Grimsby hospital who brought our world crashing down as we knew it. He was great with us and explained everything and what would happen in a way we could understand. We still have the diagram of Charlotte’s heart that he drew for us. He told us because of the size of her ASD she would need operating on before she was two. Dr Dom explained that they would normally like to wait until a child was older to operate.

Unfortunately, the powers that be decided to close the Leeds Congenital Heart Unit just as Charlotte was due her surgery. This obviously increased the anxiety and stress levels of the whole situation. Luckily Children’s Heart Surgery Fund ran the Save Our Surgery (SOS) campaign to get the unit reopened for all the families in our region which was such a relief. A huge thank you to CEO Sharon and the team behind her!

Eventually Charlotte had her surgery in 2013 by our hero Mr Osama Jaber and his team. Everyone was so helpful and caring, from the doctors, nurses, porters and domestic staff. Everyone’s role is so important to the unit.

While on the unit we noticed a lot of things had been bought by Children’s Heart Surgery Fund. PICU had just been refurbished and a lot of the things had been funded by CHSF including the murals and what I called the ‘beepy machines’. The beeps became quite comforting – the alarms not so much. We were provided with a room in The Stables while Charlotte was on PICU. It was great to be nearby if we were needed. We were so far away from home and family. Once Charlotte started to recover and was back on the heart ward, she loved walking to see the fish and playing in the playroom – all things supported by CHSF!

We decided to use Charlotte’s first Heart Day to have a party. We wanted to thank our family and friends for all their support whilst we were in hospital with Charlotte. We didn’t want to make it a fundraiser as such but asked our friends if they would throw their pennies into a jar so we could make a donation to CHSF in Charlotte’s name.

We wanted to find a way to thank everyone at the unit for the excellent care we received. This somehow snowballed and Charlotte’s ‘Every Penny Counts’ Heart Day has become an annual event in our family calendar. We have also run raffles, bake sales and had donations from the company I work for. Since 2014 Charlotte has raised £8259.36 to help families just like ours.

We asked Sarah if there was any advice she would give to anyone thinking of fundraising for CHSF…

Make full use of Lisa and the CHSF team. They have a wealth of knowledge between them to make the most of your fundraising. They can also help with marketing merchandise like posters, banners and leaflets to help promote your event. Also, if family and friends offer any help, accept it graciously! It’s all about the teamwork!

No one would choose to go on this journey, but we have met people that have become like family and the team at Children’s Heart Surgery Fund is no exception. They are always there to support you and nothing is ever too much trouble.

Here comes the rain again! But the wet weather can’t dampen our super supporters’ spirits! Let’s give a huge #FundraisingFriday round of applause to all those raising vital funds for CHSF this week. Let’s meet some of them…

Jimmy Blackhurst: Cycle

Jimmy said:

I decided to support Children’s Heart Surgery Fund because when my grandson, Myles, had his open heart surgery, the Charity did so much to support him and his mummy and daddy.

I passed sponsor forms to pretty much everyone I knew to ask people to sponsor me for cycling from Liverpool to Leeds.

It was a hard ride but definitely worth the £900 raised!

Amazing Jimmy and thank you so much for supporting CHSF! Now have that well-earned rest! PHEW!

Gina & Vicki: Leeds 10K

Gina said:

We wanted to run the Leeds 10k to continue to raise awareness and money for the amazing Children’s Heart Surgery Fund. Without them my daughter Rae would not be the happy, healthy girl she is now. It was great to see so many runners and supporters of CHSF out on the course on the day!

Bravo Gina and Vicki! More fantastic fundraising for CHSF! Thanks for your continued support! #BecauseofYou

Friends and Family of Phoebe Sixsmith

Debs, Phoebe’s Mum, said:

“We did a big tombola and cake stall along with a bucket collection at Whitby as part of the tractor pulling event. We raised £1130 in total!

We support Children’s Heart Surgery Fund as Phoebe had open heart surgery at the age of 12 weeks old which saved her life. Thank you!

From all of us at CHSF, thank you to the Sixsmiths for your ongoing support and of course, thanks everyone who gave a donation, big or small to the tombola and bucket collection!

Feeling inspired to give something back and raise much-needed funds for a great cause? Get in touch with Lisa Williams, on lisa.williams@chsf.org.uk | 0113 831 4810 or download our events calendar here for inspiration and to see other ways to get involved.

The Caroline Atha School of Dance based in Garforth, Leeds went above and beyond last month, when they raised an incredible £4341.32 for CHSF!

We spoke to Caroline herself about what inspired The Caroline Atha School of Dance to start raising money for Children’s Heart Surgery Fund…

On the 6-7 July the School put on a dance show called ‘Dance from the Heart’. Approximately 175 pupils took part in the show, ranging from two to 22 years old.

Each time we do a show we look to raise money for a charity that has a link to any of our students and we have raised thousands over last 20 years for various charities.  All profits raised as a result of ‘Dance from the Heart’s ticket sales went to Children’s Heart Surgery Fund.

Several pupils at our dance school have had a connection to congenital heart disease. About a year ago one of my pupils was diagnosed with a heart problem. She had attended the dance school from aged 3 to now 13.

A little boy whose stepsister attends my school was saved by a defibrillator. We also have a little girl with Turner syndrome who has had heart surgery and will have more going forwards.

Even when I announced CHSF as the chosen charity a few more parents told me of experiences their children had had as babies and toddlers.

I have learnt about what Children’s Heart Surgery Fund does along the way and what a great charity they are. We then found out one of the dance mums, Rebecca, works at the Leeds Congenital Heart Unit and so she told us all about the various things our donation could help with!

We asked Caroline if there was any advice she would give to other fundraisers…

I would say just totally commit to it and others will be behind you. I said to all my volunteers we don’t individually have huge amounts of money to give to charity but we can give our time and our talents.

Also because our fundraiser got children involved, they in-turn benefited from being part of the experience. I have stressed throughout to my pupils about being part of a team and how what they are doing will be helping someone less fortunate than themselves.

So, as a leader, show your commitment and effort 100% and people will follow!

Feeling inspired by this story? Get in touch with Lisa Williams, on lisa.williams@chsf.org.uk | 0113 831 4810 or download our events calendar for inspiration and to see other ways to get involved.

Danny was born with a hole in his heart.  This was monitored with no action needed until he was 11 when it was decided that the hole should be closed.

Danny had his first open heart surgery in 2015. Further investigations revealed his aortic valve wasn’t coping with the new pressures in his heart. The decision was made to replace the valve.

In 2016, just 15 months after his first operation, Danny had a mechanical valve fitted. It was during this time that Danny’s family became more aware of all of the work Children’s Heart Surgery Fund does.

Danny’s mum Gillian says

From seeing all of the stickers on much of the medical equipment in both PICU and on Ward L51 funded by CHSF, to the accommodation on site we were allowed to stay in. There’s also all of the support Children’s Heart Surgery Fund give to the heart warriors and their families. They become such a big part of all of our lives.

Due to his mechanical valve, Danny is on the blood thinning medicine Warfarin for life. This means regular blood tests and Warfarin clinics to ensure he takes the right dose.

CHSF have funded an INR testing machine for Danny. With the INR testing machine Danny can do his blood tests at home and he can ring the results in to the Children’s Warfarin Clinic.

Mum, Gillian continues:

I can’t imagine the disruption Danny would have to his school life if he had to visit a Warfarin Clinic for blood tests. There are occasions when he has needed to test his blood every day. Danny has just finished his GCSEs and without being able to test at home he would have had to miss some school which could have affected his results.

We asked Danny to tell us a bit more about his fundraising for CHSF…

I first started fundraising in 2015. I wrote a letter to my headteacher asking if my school could take part in Wear Red Day and from that I helped organise events at school the next year as well.

I’ve taken part in a number of Superhero Walks – dressed as a Surgeon! (Remember not all Superheroes wear capes!)

Last year I was supposed to take part in Kapow! (the 5km obstacle course) but unfortunately broke my arm just before. This didn’t stop me cheering the team on!

My ‘piece de resistance’ was doing the CHSF abseil down a 10 storey building this year. It was amazing!

I even persuaded my mum to jump out of a plane!! An experience that she says was ‘most exhilarating’!

We asked Danny if he had any advice for anyone thinking of fundraising for CHSF…

Do what you enjoy doing! Take the opportunity to tick something off your bucket list.  Whether that’s doing that half marathon you’ve always promised yourself you’ll do one day or jumping out of a plane.

If they all sound too energetic then the Superhero Walk is great. A fantastic opportunity to meet families all going through the same as you or there supporting their family and friends.

CHSF is great team to be part of! We are so grateful for the support they have given over the years and we will continue to do what we can to help raise funds to try and give something back.

Feeling inspired by Danny’s story? Want to take on a challenge? Whether you go it alone or get a team together, find out more about CHSF events and how you can get involved today!

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