Heart transplant recipient Brittany Michaud gives her brother Brandon a hug during a public event in Oliver.
File photo
(This is part one of a two-part series on Highway to Healing, a new charity established in the Oliver area.)
It’s amazing how fast your world can be turned upside down.
One minute you’re enjoying a family outing, and the next you’re rushing your child to the hospital.
The stress is mounting, the bills are piling up, and you don’t know where to turn.
But a small group of people in Oliver is determined to help with “Highway to Healing,” a new charity in town.
After a two-year labour of love, the Highway to Healing Support Society has been born.
The Rotary Club of Oliver has identified a need to help families who are faced with medical crises when a child suffers a serious injury or illness. It is often necessary to travel outside the area for hospital visits, which creates stress and financial hardship.
“The last thing they have time to do is research where they can get help,” said Highway to Healing (H2H) director Ernie Dumais, a 30-year Rotary member.
Dumais is joined by fellow directors Bob Currie, Maureen Doerr, Joan McCaughey, and Larry Stevens.
Dumais modeled H2H after Y.A.N.A. (You Are Not Alone), a Comox Valley organization that assists families with travel expenses when their children need medical treatment.
“We interviewed (local) families and they are all excited that we’re here to help,” Dumais said.
The society will assist families residing in the Town of Oliver and Area C. It is for children up to 18 years of age requiring treatment at a medical facility outside their community.
Highway to Healing can provide emergency funding for travel and temporary accommodation. It also provides assistance in accessing other programs, such as Shriners, BC Family Residence Program, Ronald McDonald House and BC Lions Easter Seals House.
Highway to Healing will access funds from various sources, such as corporate donations, and community fundraisers. As a qualified charitable organization, it can accept donations from other registered charities, such as the Community Foundation of the South Okanagan-Similkameen. Tax receipts can be issued for donations.
At last week’s launch of H2H, Currie commended Dumais for his vision and for bringing this idea to the Rotary Club.
Currie had to reach for the Kleenex box more than once as he listened to parents relay their stories about their sick children suffering from cancer, leukemia and brittle bone disease.
“There are some very serious issues that require many trips to Vancouver and long stays in hospital,” Currie said.
For example, in 2010-2011, there were nearly 170 visits to BC Children’s Hospital from families in the South Okanagan.
“We’re helping families get there,” Currie said.
He pointed out that some parents have to quit their jobs to look after their sick children, which is a big impact on the family.
Shawna Michaud from Oliver recounted her family’s ordeal when daughter Brittany suddenly fell ill.
“Brittany was a healthy child, then one day her heart started failing . . . everything was turned upside down within hours.”
Michaud said the family didn’t know what to do or where to go, but Brittany ended up in hospital for nine months and needed the aid of a mechanical heart while waiting for a heart transplant, which saved her life. Now she’s a healthy 15-year-old girl.
“We are so blessed to live in this town. People came out of the blue to support us. We’re still in shock,” Michaud said.
She noted that if anyone is looking to donate to a charity, it should be Highway to Healing.
During the launch, the Rotary Club donated $1,000 to the society. Bev Pottinger from Nunes-Pottinger Funeral Service and Crematorium also made a donation.
John Ruschke from the South Okanagan Shrine Club commended the launch of H2H and outlined how the Shriners bus often takes children and their families to hospital free of charge.
For more information, visit the H2H website at www.highwaytohealing.ca. Check out their Facebook page, too.
Lyonel Doherty
Oliver Chronicle
