An Aberdeenshire family has paid tribute to children’s hospice Chas, which helped them cherish every last moment with their son, Fin.
They spoke in support of Children’s Hospices Across Scotland (Chas), which has recently benefited from a fundraising partnership with Scotmid.
Scotmid colleagues together raised a massive £375,000 to expand Chas’ work across the country.
Gillian Donald says Chas supported her 11-year-old son Fin to pass away peacefully in his own home. For that, she will “forever be grateful”.
Memories of love and fun
Finlay James Donald – known to his family as Fin – had a very rare degenerative disorder called D-Bifunctional Protein Deficiency. Also known as pseudo-Zellweger, the genetic disorder causes a deterioration of the nervous system.
As Fin’s care needs escalated, Gillian turned to Chas for support. She explains:
“Spending time in a hospice, with other people involved, was not what we wanted. Chas respected us as a family and wanted to provide help in a way that worked for us.”
Fin needed extensive care to stay at home. This included a Bi-pap to help him breathe, chest physio, regular suction and oxygen, and a gastrojejunostomy button to administer feeds and medicine. Sadly, Fin also needed numerous medicines to alleviate his chronic pain.
While the family wanted to care for Fin themselves, Chas at Home visited every few weeks to let them rest.
Gillian has fond memories of their visits, saying Fin really enjoyed seeing the team.
“The nurses also learnt that despite all the health challenges Fin had, he had an amazing sense of humour,” says Gillian. “He especially loved messy play and they particularly had to watch out for water being spilled (thrown perhaps!) over them. We are so grateful to them for all they fun and love they gave him.”
‘There are no words’
As Fin’s condition deteriorated, Chas once again stepped in with support. Nurse Louise Esson and palliative care consultant Dr Fiona Herd became very special people in the family’s lives.
“There are no words to explain how hard it is as a parent to plan for your child’s death,” says Gillian. “Louise guided us through making these plans, supported us during Fin’s deterioration, and did everything she could to ensure Fin had the right death for him.”
Dr Herd visited Fin regularly and ensured that even in lockdown, the family’s wishes were honoured.
“On 22 May 2020 our amazing little boy peacefully passed away in his own bed, in the arms of his Mumma’s hug, with ‘Finlay’s Daddy’, Neil, holding his hands and his precious dog Barney snuggled at his feet,” says Gillian.
Gillian has shared her immense gratitude to Chas.
“Many people think Chas is mainly about the hospice facilities, but don’t realise that they do so much more than that,” she says.
Gillian shared Fin’s story to highlight how Chas at Home can support families in their darkest days.
Chas wants to support more families
Now, thanks to a charitable partnership with Scotmid, Chas is set to expand its home support services.
The partnership included staff working in Scotmid food stores, Semichem, Scotmid Funerals and Lakes & Dales stores across Scotland, Northern Ireland and the north of England. Together, they arranged kiltwalks and fundraising events, even climbing Ben Nevis, to raise a massive £375,000.
The funds were donated to CHAS as well as three other children’s hospices: Jigsaw Children’s Hospice in Cumbria, Northern Ireland Children’s Hospice and St Oswald’s Hospice in Newcastle upon Tyne.
The donation will help Chas to support more families like Gillian’s. Each week, three children in Scotland die from an incurable condition, and demand for Chas’ services is on the rise.
There are currently 16,700 families in Scotland living with the prospect of losing their child. Chas hopes to expand its home services to support them all.
“We’re incredibly appreciative of the efforts made by Scotmid staff, members and customers to raise funds and awareness for Chas,” says outreach director Nicky Bridges.
“Thanks to them, we can now reach more families across Scotland, even those in the most remote parts, and provide essential care and respite in the comfort of their own homes during the toughest of times.
“The funds raised through this partnership get us one step closer to achieving our ambitious mission of reaching every child and family in Scotland that needs our help.”
John Brodie, Scotmid Chief Executive, said: “Our customers, members, and staff have raised a fantastic amount. The work of children’s hospices resonates deeply with us all, so we are delighted to be able to make a difference to families and children when they need it most.”
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