Thanks for taking the time to visit Ruby's Just Giving page.

We want to raise money to support the amazing team at St.Michael's Hospital, Bristol with all that they did for our Ruby after her emergency birth at another hospital. She wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for Professor Marianne Thoresen and her team at St. Michael's. 

In 1998, Professor Marianne Thoresen was one of the first to study induced hypothermia for newborns suffering from asphyxia. She found that lowering the body temperature of babies following oxygen deprivation protects the newborn brain. Professor Thoresen realised the potential xenon and cooling could have when combined. St Michael’s then became the first hospital in the world to treat a baby with xenon in March 2010. 

Ruby was a recipient of this 'cooling process' a year later in March 2011. Every day Ruby was in the intensive care unit and then the high dependency unit Paul and Lisa were visited by Professor Marianne Thoresen to discuss Ruby's treatment and prognosis. She spent her first month of life in hospital until she was not dependant on machines.

We continue to meet Marianne at annual reviews of Ruby's development. We are forever indebted to her as a medical professional and as a lovely lady who really cares about her patients and their families. Although the brain cooling worked to an extent, Ruby does still have a significant brain injury. It has physically affected her right side (cerebral palsy) and she has a visual and hearing impairment along with a global developmental delay. We are lucky that Ruby was accepted for bilateral cochlear implants and the audiology team at St. Michael's were amazing from her operation in 2013 to the present day.

We are so pleased and excited for how many hurdles our Ruby has overcome at 11 years of age. We want to raise as much money as we can to support St.Michael's hospital and Bristol Children's Hospital through their Cots for Tots and Grand Appeal. Please give generously!

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity and make sure Gift Aid is reclaimed on every eligible donation by a UK taxpayer. So it’s the most efficient way to donate and raise more, whilst saving time and cutting costs for the charity.

So please dig deep and donate now.