Thank you for visiting our fundraising page.

Over the month of November, Isaac and Maisie will be walking the distance between St. Richard’s Hospital in Chichester and Southampton Hospital to raise money for Friends of PICU. At 36 miles, it’s a big challenge for their little legs and we will track their steps as they walk in parks, playgrounds and beaches, posting pictures each time they do a walk.

Maisie's Story:

In November 2019, when Maisie was nearly 3 months old, she caught bronchiolitis. Although most children cope well with this virus, Maisie had been born prematurely and had already struggled with respiratory distress and pneumonia in NICU as a newborn. Maisie was admitted to our local hospital and had support with her breathing for 5 days before a sudden deterioration when half of each of her lungs collapsed and she was unable to maintain her own breathing.

The amazing staff at St Richard’s were able to ventilate and stabilise Maisie, before a retrieval ambulance and team from Southampton Hospital PICU arrived and transported Maisie back for specialist care. Although this was the most terrifying experience we have had as parents, the PICU staff were incredible and provided us with so much support in the time Maisie spent there. The care and kindness shown to all of us there was overwhelming - from surrounding Maisie with toys and music, to providing emotional support for us and instilling hope that everything would be OK. We will forever be grateful for the PICU team.

Isaac's story:

The following year, one month before Isaac's first birthday, his world was turned upside down in a flash. During a country walk, Isaac was on the receiving end of a horrific accident – he was kicked in the head by a horse coming towards him down a path. After heroics from Isaac's uncle and a passing stranger, we were able to perform CPR on him until he was rushed to St Richard’s hospital. It was there that Isaac was stabilised until he was transferred to Southampton Hospital.

There we were greeted by an incredible team of neurosurgeons who performed a craniotomy to save his life. He was then put into an induced coma where he was treated by the wonderful PICU team. They became our rocks during the most horrific weeks of our lives. Isaac was later transferred to the paediatric neurosurgery ward where he was offered intensive neurorehabilitation. I shall never forget the day when the neurosurgeon said “You’ve got your little boy back”, words that to this day bring a tear to my eye. Whilst Isaac has sustained permanent damage and still has a long road ahead of him with his health, we are forever grateful to the PICU team.

During both Maisie and Isaac’s time in PICU, it became clear just how much the Friends of PICU charity provides. The retrieval ambulances, the pod which allows babies to be safely transported on a stretcher, ventilators and even the toys and home comforts the children use while in PICU have all been funded by the charity.

Without the brilliant PICU staff and the work of Friends of PICU, we could have lost both Maisie and Isaac - something that seems unbelievable when you see them playing happily together now. So please support them both and donate anything that you can while they walk the 36 mile distance from St Richard’s Hospital in Chichester to Southampton Hospital during the month of November. All of the money raised will go directly to the Friends of PICU charity.

Thanks for taking the time to visit our JustGiving page.
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. So it's the most efficient way to donate - saving time and cutting costs for the charity.