Overview
Team 1C started off as a group of parents/carers of children with CHD (congenital heart defects) gathering on Ward 1C at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool. Recognising how much help was needed to support children and their families both at home and abroad, they have spent the last 5 years fundraising for some amazing initiatives, including funding surgery for more than 200 children living in countries with no access to free healthcare, supporting local hospital wards in the Northwest of England, and volunteering at Ronald McDonald House. Now they have set up as a charity so they can provide even more vital support to families that need it.
Team 1C came together as a group more than five years ago to give all children born with CHD the best possible life. Their name comes from the name of the ward they met on – Ward 1C at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, which treats children from all over the Northwest of England and parts of Wales and Northern Ireland. Before becoming a charity, the team focussed their efforts on fundraising for various causes close to their hearts.
Overseas they have raised enough money to fund heart surgeries for more than 200 children who would have died, having been born in countries with no free healthcare facilities like the NHS. The heart surgeries are provided at special “camps” named after Team 1C’s children, providing a legacy for grieving parents.
Closer to home, they have built a community for CHD families, and led many fundraising events. They raised £20,000 for Alder Hey Childrens Charity as well as purchasing equipment for the Cardiology ward, play equipment and parent supplies. They have fundraised and refurbished an apartment for the local 85-room Ronald McDonald House at Alder Hey. They regularly volunteer there and provide treats for the families staying there. They have also raised funds for Liverpool Women’s hospital to buy a cardiac sim doll, which helped doctors training in diagnosing tiny babies.
They have only recently become a registered charity, having noticed that they have been filling a gap in support services for CHD families in the Northwest, and they would like to be able to make more of an impact. Early projects for their new charity include as Buddy Support Programme, a Kid’s Fun Day and a Mental Wellbeing Day.
The Buddy Support Programme will provide peer support for newly diagnosed expectant parents at Alder Hey, including information and supplies to make life in hospital a little easier. The Kid’s fun day will be a chance for cardiac children to meet each other outside of hospital and have fun, in a fully inclusive environment. The Mental Wellbeing Day will help families to explore a wider range of options for coping and mental wellbeing aside from services available in the clinical environment.
The Grants for Good funding of £2,500 will help this new charity fund its first independent initiatives, providing some much-needed support to families across the Northwest.
At the heart of our mission lies the profound desire to bridge the digital divide, empowering young individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds. Often, these youth remain in the peripheries, having limited or no access to the technological tools that many of us take for granted. With your support, we aim to change that narrative.
Every camera and tablet we buy, every software we subscribe to, and every laptop we distribute serves as a testament to our shared vision: a world where every young individual, irrespective of their socio-economic background, can access and thrive in the digital realm.
Adam Storch
