Help foundation’s work shine brightly on Starlight Day

TOMORROW (Friday, May 1) is Starlight Day, and the Starlight Children’s Foundation needs your help to raise $1.3 million to deliver happiness to more than 33,000 seriously ill and hospitalised children around Australia.
As Starlight’s biggest national fundraising event, Starlight Day aims to raise much-needed funds to support sick kids through its hospital services – the Starlight Express Room and Captain Starlight.
With a Starlight Express Room in every children’s hospital in Australia and more than 180 Captain Starlights nationally, every child admitted to hospital, regardless of their illness or injury, can get access to these vital services with their family.
One child that has welcomed the foundation’s work is Aru, who lived in the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne for six months as she waited for a heart transplant.
When Aru was first moved into the ward, Captain Starlight’s visit brought a beaming smile to the six-month-old’s face – a big relief considering she was plugged into life-saving equipment and limited in her mobility.
Not long before her first birthday, Aru underwent life-saving transplant surgery.
Aru, now three, requires weekly specialist care in hospital. Treatment complications has led Aru to develop a food aversion so now she is tube-fed. Aru is also undergoing treatment for post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease – a rare complication of solid organ transplants.
“Starlight does an amazing job of taking the away the stress from Aru’s hospital stays,” mother Smital said.
“This is so important for kids like Aru who can spend months in hospital. When you see your child singing and dancing with Captain Starlight, it’s a stress-buster for you as parents, too.”
Starlight Children’s Foundation chief executive officer Louise Baxter said happiness was critical to a sick child’s development and to building resilience.
“The work Starlight does to support sick kids in every children’s hospital nationally is only made possible through the community, who we rely on for support.
“Being seriously ill shouldn’t mean missing out on the fun of childhood, especially when evidence shows happiness helps kids bounce back after going through tough times.”
“While health professionals treat the serious illness, Starlight, through its hospital services (Captain Starlight and the Starlight Express Room) is there to deliver fun to sick kids and their families when they need it most.”
Anyone can make a donation on the Starlight Day website, with all donations made before midnight on May 1 doubled by Starlight’s corporate partners.
To donate, head to starlightday.org.au.