A South Surrey girl all-too-familiar with BC Children's Hospital is "jeaning up" this week to help raise money for the facility.
Meghan Doerksen was 11 years old when she was diagnosed with Crohn's disease last summer following efforts to unravel why the once-bubbly girl had stopped eating and complained of pain in her side.
What followed included multiple surgeries, the removal of her large intestine, six months in hospital and six blood transfusions.
“It was difficult to see our daughter changing from a bouncy, energetic 11-year-old to a very sick child who needed help to get up to use the bathroom," Meghan's mom, Leanne Arnott, shares in a story on the BCCH Foundation's website.
"Her pain increased so quickly and her health deteriorated at an alarming rate."
Released from hospital last Christmas, Meghan returns to BCCH regularly for checkups, and her parents credit the hospital's medical team and caregivers with getting the family through.
“Fizzie the Clown and the volunteers from Child Life were able to get Meghan smiling and laughing,” Arnott says. “They play a really critical role when your child is in hospital long-term. The volunteers who set up and offer tea to parents on family night became an extension of our family and they made Meghan's journey much easier to get through.”
Thursday (April 28), BCCHF is encouraging people to join Meghan in supporting its annual Jeans Day fundraiser, by purchasing a special $5 button or $20 lapel pin and donning the 'Canadian Tuxedo' – a full complement of jean jacket, shirt and pants.
The effort is hoped to raise more than $1 million for the foundation's Excellence in Child Health Fund, which supports the most urgent health-care needs at BCCH.
Buttons and lapel pins are available from retailers including Save-On-Foods, Overwaitea Foods, PriceSmart Foods, Cooper’s Foods, Urban Fare, Costco, Thrifty Foods, IGA and London Drugs.
“Funds raised through Jeans Day have a huge impact on care at BC Children’s,” says Teri Nicholas, president and CEO of BC Children’s Hospital Foundation. “It takes a team to support a sick or injured child, and we are grateful to everyone who joins that team with the purchase of a button or lapel pin. It’s a small gesture that makes a big difference.”
For more information, visit www.jeansday.ca