Kit's Fund

We have set up this GoFundMe to sell some specially made Lapel Pins (150 of) & Keyrings (50 of), designed by the always magnificent Ashlie, with 100% of the profits being donated to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at the Monash Children’s Hospital in Clayton as part of our eternal gratitude towards them for all their help and support over Kit’s 9 days with us <3

$9.95 AUD per item with FREE delivery within Australia ($5.45 being donated directly)
$11.95 AUD per item with FREE delivery Internationally ($5.39 being donated directly)

The $1,600 target takes into account the cost to make the Pins/Keyrings, as well as the fees involved to hopefully get a total donation amount of at least $1,000!!

Information on how to order and a full price breakdown are shown at the bottom of this page and if you have time, please read Kit’s story below..

Kit Wilson Little was our (Ashlie & Alan James) third child, who came into this world with some known complications that would have changed the course of all our lives, especially his own.

At 26 weeks, during the pregnancy, an Amniocentesis had picked up on missing genetic material of Chromosome 11 in his DNA (also known as 11q), giving Kit the very rare diagnosis of Jacobsen's Syndrome, which based on research by the US National Institute of Health, will only affect 1 in 100,000 of newborns.

Challenges associated with Jacobsen's vary from person to person but base themselves around having a platelet disorder, delayed development of motor skills & speech and also cognitive impairment.

Despite this news, we were more than ready to take on whatever changes in life this brought with it; Kit would be loved (and very much was) no less than any other human.

Unfortunately, a heart complication, (which is also related to Jacobsen's) was picked up on the ultrasounds scans, and every single week from here onwards was spent in the hospital, having specialist monitoring and further scans.

Kit was a very important baby at the front of everyone's thoughts and he wasn't even here yet.

He was eventually born on Thursday the 20th of September at roughly 20:22, weighing in at just under 5lbs (around 2.2kgs) and was quickly whisked away to the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) where he was stabilised while we waited for the Head of Departments to do a detailed scan of his heart, which would confirm the direction everyone would go in, in terms of operations, to help Kit eventually breathe, fight and thrive without machines.

In the very early hours of the morning, however, we found that wouldn't be the case...

Through an ultrasound he was also found to have a rare congenital heart defect known as Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS) in which the left side of the heart was severely underdeveloped. In short, his little heart was not formed enough to support blood circulation through his body.

It immediately became a situation of feeling like life had pulled the rug from under our feet and we now had to find peace with what was happening so we could simply make the most of the time we had with him, now he was here.

The Foetal Diagnostic Unit (FDU), NICU (Neonatal intensive Care Unit), Genetics Specialist Team, and everyone at the Monash Medical Centre and Monash Children’s Hospital in Clayton were absolutely necessary in our understanding and support; keeping us well educated, supported, calm and positive during the rest of our journey.

Simply put, the money raised from selling these Badges and Keyrings, will go straight to the Neonatal intensive Care (NICU).

It became our home for a short 5 days and we know that everyone will know someone, if not themselves, that is there at some point in the period of having kids, whether your babies survive or decide to be a star like our boy.

We're extremely thankful for the nurses and doctors that decided to do this line of work. True heroes.

Please see links below if you would like to read further about Jacobsen’s or HLHS.

Jacobsen’s Syndrome
https://gardn.org.au/info_sheets/jacobsen-syndrome
https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/jacobsen-syndrome

Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome
https://www.rch.org.au/cardiology/heart_defects/Hypoplastic_Left_Heart_Syndrome_HD
https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/heartdefects/hlhs.html

How to order:
1.       Decide which items you would like to purchase, and how many :P
2.       Send Ashlie or Alan a DM through IG or FB Messengar with your order and address
3.       We will check inventory and confirm your order, giving you a final cost and order no
4.       Make a donation via this page based on the final cost quoted to you
5.       Wait by the postbox for your order to arrive shortly
6.       Wear/use your Pin/Keyring loud and proud
7.       Share photos using #kitsfund and tagging @kitsfund on IG wherever possible

Full per piece item cost breakdown (ALL prices are in AUS, please check your exchange rate accordingly):
GoFundMe - 2.9% per donation + $0.30 as a transaction fee
Postage - $0.41 per envelope + $1 stamp for domestic orders and $3 stamp for international orders
Pins & Keyrings - $2.50 per item (order of 200 from Neon Republic (with thanks to Jackson) for $500)
• $9.95 - 0.29 - 0.30 (gofundme) - 1.41 (domestic postage) -2.5 (item cost) = $5.45 Donated!!
• $11.95 - 0.35 - 0.30 (gofundme) - 3.41 (international postage) -2.5 (item cost) = $5.39 Donated!!