“This year, I am doing the abseil for CHSF to celebrate my 50th Birthday and my daughter Charlotte’s 10th Heart Day!
“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.”
“We were referred to see the paediatrician, who then referred us to Leeds.”
“We first met with Dr Dom at Grimsby hospital who brought our world crashing down as we knew it. Dr Dom 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.”
“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.”
“All this on top of being five months pregnant with Charlotte’s brother Oliver, having hyperemesis gravidarum. Least I could have my foetal heart scan while Charlotte was in hospital that Dr Dom arranged for me.”
“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.”
“All this on top of being five months pregnant with Charlotte’s brother Oliver, having hyperemesis gravidarum. Least I could have my foetal heart scan while Charlotte was in hospital that Dr Dom arranged for me.”
“Charlotte is now doing great thanks to the team at Leeds. She is on three-yearly reviews and will probably have two more reviews before being discharged from their care.”
“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 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.”
“This year in addition to Charlotte’s Heart Day, I am doing the abseil for CHSF to celebrate my 50th Birthday and Charlotte’s 10th Heart Day! We are hoping to raise enough money to buy an INR kit. These kits mean that children can test their own blood at home to save hospital visits and they also feel they have some control over their treatment.”
Join Sarah and Children’s Heart Surgery Fund for the first CHSF abseil in almost four years.
You’ll climb the dizzying heights of the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Harrogate, at an amazing 140ft. Then take a leap of faith as you abseil down to meet your friends and family.
Sunday 4th June
£15pp
Support for families: June 2025
"As we reach the halfway point of the year, we wanted to take a moment to share what the Family Support Team has achieved so far in 2025. "Each quarter, we reflect on our progress to help everyone understand the impact we've made. "This update gives a picture of our...
Maisy
Maisy was diagnosed with Down syndrome shortly after birth, and at just 7 months old, she had open heart surgery at the Leeds Congenital Heart Unit. Her mum Laura has kindly shared their journey - from diagnosis, and the care Maisy received, to the support they’ve had...
Blake
Blake's mum, Chelsea, said: “My partner Matthew and I found out that Blake had something wrong with his heart when he suddenly was really poorly on 30th September 2022. “We took him to Chesterfield Hospital to be seen and Matthew and I were told he had sepsis,...