A special sensory garden for Isabel by Make-A-Wish® Australia
Make-A-Wish relies on the support of kind people, just like you, who want to bring the healing power of a wish to children like Isabel.
Seven-year-old Isabel’s diagnosis with extremely rare Ring Chromosome 9 means every single day is a challenge. And her future is unknown. She can’t communicate verbally and has limited vision, but it’s very clear to everyone around her the absolute joy
that music, sound, and touch bring her. This bubbly little girl also loves spending time outdoors with her 10-year-old big sister Alyse, and 6-month-old brother Finn.
A unique wish for a sensory garden will give Isabel endless joy and strength to keep up the fight.
With your help we can make this wish come true, and create a beautiful place for Isabel to play and make memories with her family.
A sensory garden will help Isabel escape the harsh realities of her illness
Isabel’s daily fight is something no little girl should have to face. She has a tube in her throat that has to be changed every week, her heart rate and blood oxygen levels are checked daily, and she needs a machine to help her sleep.
On a good night, Isabel wakes up two to three times needing help. On a bad night, it’s many more. Thankfully, due to her mum’s care, Isabel hasn’t been admitted into hospital so far this year.
What brings Isabel relief from this daily struggle are music and touch
Ever since Isabel was little, she was fascinated with things she could touch and smell. With limited vision and hearing, this amazing little girl connects with the world around her through feeling and smelling. She also loves music. Brie, Isabel’s mum, thinks
perhaps it’s the vibration of the music that she relates to.
As soon as she hears any noise, Isabel giggles, kicks her legs and shakes her hands. She loves finding anything that will make noise – and sometimes likes to play the tambourine at 2am!
A sensory garden will give Isabel the chance to grow, learn, play and communicate in her own special way with her loved ones.
Most gardens are a lovely place to spend time in, but a sensory garden is specially designed to stimulate all five senses. Time spent in natural environments also has proven health benefits, such as reduced stress and lowered blood pressure.
Most importantly, it will be a place for Isabel to spend time with her Mum, Dad, big sister Alyse, and her baby brother Finn.
Wishes give seriously ill children and their families hope for the future, strength to face the challenges of their illness, and joy from their incredible wish experience. A Make-A-Wish wish is a powerful psychological intervention, designed to help build
resilience and strength within the child – enabling them to better cope with the fear and pain associated with their fight.
You can help by pledging a very generous gift to help build a sensory garden to bring Isabel hope and joy.
“They asked if they could perform an emergency tracheostomy… I immediately said ‘yes of course’ but the thought kept going through my mind “why are they calling me… just save my baby girl.” - Isabel’s mum.
There were no signs right up until the day Isabel was born that anything was wrong, but that’s when it became a fight for her life.
Isabel spent the first 5 days of her life undergoing extensive blood and genetic tests, a life saving operation to repair her bowel, and an emergency tracheostomy.
What started as a 4 hour surgery became a 9 hour extensive operation – all within just 24 hours of being born.
But this was just the start of brave little Isabel’s fight for her life.
At 5 days old, Isabel was diagnosed with rare genetic disorder, Ring Chromosome 9. She is now 7 years old, and with very little known about her condition, her future remains uncertain.
Isabel’s very own sensory garden will give her the chance to grow, learn, play, and communicate with her loved ones.
You can bring great joy to a special little girl and help build Isabel’s garden by pledging your donation
here.
Mum’s thank you to you:
Brie knows a sensory garden will make a huge difference to Isabel’s future, bringing her endless joy and strength.
She is humbled and grateful to everyone who, like you, donates to Make-A-Wish to help make wishes come true for seriously ill children and teenagers.
Make-A-Wish Australia has made over 8,000 unique wishes come true for seriously ill children across Australia since 1985.
As we receive no government funding, this has all been possible thanks to generous support from individuals like you.
In recognising our 30 years of granting cherished wishes in Australia, we want to bring the healing power of a wish to as many seriously-ill children as possible. With your help, we can ensure that we can continue to give hope, strength and joy to children
just like those featured here. Your support will make a powerful and important difference in a sick child’s life.
As these children battle their life-threatening illness, they build resilience through the hope, strength and joy their incredible wish inspires, which if not for you, cannot be made possible.
To help more seriously ill children be granted their most cherished wish come true, visit:
http://startsomegood.com/Profile/makeawish2015
