Rosalie is a typical little girl in many ways. She’s smart, funny, and loves people, animals, and music (especially The Wiggles). She enjoys exploring the world, laughs a lot, and gets grumpy when she’s hungry (just like her parents).

Rosalie has Rett Syndrome, which means life for her is different from most other children. Rett Syndrome is a genetic neurological condition that affects brain development, making Rosalie reliant on help for all aspects of her life. While she understands much of what is said to her, she cannot communicate verbally. She is currently learning to use an eye-gaze computer to help her communicate, but this is a very slow process.

Physically, Rosalie is unable to walk or stand unaided and has limited use of her hands. She has a PEG feeding tube because she cannot drink liquids safely. In addition, she has other health issues, such as epilepsy, and experiences several seizures a day, though we are working to get these under control.

Her disability profoundly impacts her life, restricting her opportunities and experiences. As Rosalie grows bigger, it is becoming increasingly difficult to care for her physically. To address this, we’ve had adaptations made to our house to make it wheelchair accessible.

As a family, we love going for walks and visiting areas of natural beauty, and we want Rosalie to be able to join us. Any money we raise will go toward a van with the necessary adaptations for Rosalie, as well as specialist and sensory equipment to support and improve her physical and mental health and well-being.

Our vision is to create a safe haven for Rosalie—a place where we can care for her easily and where she can feel safe and content. Your donations will help us make this dream a reality.

Thank you so much for your support.

7.5% of all donations to Tree of Hope in relation to this appeal will be allocated to the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope to cover our core operating costs.

If we raise insufficient funds, or surplus funds, then the funds will be used, if appropriate, to fund support for our child’s needs in accordance with Tree of Hope’s charitable objects. If in those circumstances we are unable to use all or part of the funds for the benefit of our child in accordance with Tree of Hope’s charitable objectives, then any funds that cannot be used will be transferred to be used for the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope.