BY JACQUELYN RICHARDS
There are only three children's hospices in Australia to cater for the thousands of kids with a terminal or life-limiting illness and their families, but Rio's Legacy Mission hopes to change that.
15-month-old Rio was initially believed to have gastro when he spent 40 nights in intensive care, but it turned out to be a serious heart condition.
"Long story short we went to hospital and then never went home," Rio's father Ryan Fowler said.
Ryan said the doctors at Randwick Hospital who were treating their son were amazing, but eventually they were told he had a life limiting condition.
"They said we can't save him,"
"That's where they introduced us to a place called Bear Cottage...which is the only hospice in New South Wales that supports families who have a child with a life-limiting condition,
"Rio's journey there was up and down as you can imagine, but they allowed us to be a family again."
Now Ryan's jogging from Humming Bird House in Brisbane Queensland all the way down the east coast of New South Wales to Oran Park in Western Sydney.
"That's where we're hoping to build a hospice to support families when they're going through the toughest thing."
Once built it will be the second children's hospice in New South Wales and fourth in the country.
"Our challenge and our charity is trying to build more of them there's only three of those hospices in the courty...in the UK there's over 55 and we should have at least 16 here," Ryan says.
Families in the Hunter with a child suffering from a terminal illness, are currently forced to travel to Manly to access treatment and palliative care.
Ryan is receiving immense support from both his family and the public as he takes part in the fundraising trek.
"I'm just trying to help these kids because they can't do it, they can't physically get out there an do it, but even me a type one diabetic I can get out there and do it; I can champion them because they're amazing and these places are amazing and they need our support," he says.
Running through Newcastle this Saturday, September 30, Ryan is asking the Newcastle and Hunter community to get behind his cause and help raise money for a hugely under-funded service.
"We're looking to raise $4 million, it's a big target but if we can get up around $100 thousand that'd be great."
The money will go towards building the hospice and providing a mobile service that can support families in their homes, while also assisting staff at the John Hunter Children's Hospital.
Donations to Rio's Legacy can be made at https://rioslegacy.org.au/ and you can follow Ryan's journey and stay up to date on Facebook, Instagram and Tiktok.
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| Image: Palliative Care Australia's Facebook |
