Honouring River's Life

Update: We are speechless at the response that this gofundme has had, the outpouring of generosity has been heart warming in a deeply challenging time.

As we’ve said at the bottom of the description we will be donating a large portion of the money to various organisations. Once we have space, time and the emotional capacity we will decide how best to distribute and donate to have a resounding impact. We have already started discussions with Bear Cottage about what their needs are and will begin those important conversations with Sydney Kids Hospital  in good time.

Our initial intention was to impact and offer support to the people and places that have touched our journey like CICU at Sydney Kids and Bear Cottage staff and some of the families that are in similar situations and may not have the same fundraising capacity as we have had.
We will provide an update after we have navigated our current challenging time.

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Hi everyone,

My name is Sasha, I am Gaia and Candy's youngest sister. It’s always been Gaia and Candy's dream to be Mums and after a long journey, they welcomed their beautiful baby girl River into this world in April this year. From the moment she was born, River struggled immensely. She spent the first two weeks of her life in NICU and has had trips in and out of hospital weekly ever since. What we came to understand is that River was born with a very rare genetic condition, so rare that she’s the only person in the world with this specific genetic change. There is no cure and from her diagnosis we knew her life would be short.

After being discharged from hospital a few weeks ago, her condition has deteriorated rapidly. She is now entering end of life care with the support of Bear Cottage.

In this process her Mums have been by her side every moment, loving her and making some beautiful memories.

So many friends and family near and far have been asking me how they can help and support during this difficult time. The girls are lucky to have lots of food and are comfortable at the moment. However, this gofundme has been started to provide some financial relief to the girls while they are present with their River. The proceeds raised will be split between the Sydney Childrens Hospital , Bear Cottage  End of Life Care, and supporting the girls during this time.

The girls appreciate each and every one of you and are so grateful for the love and support.

Update: we are absolutely overwhelmed with the love and support the girls have received and are absolutely shocked at how generous you have all been. We have surpassed our goal and will leave this page open for those who would still like to donate. Thank you so much. 

Sasha, Gaia, Candy, and our baby River.

xxxxx