Red Cross receives financial head-start to build ontology unit

The Children’s Hospital Trust recently received a quarter of a million rand for the upgrade of the Oncology Unit at the Cape Town Red Cross Children’s Hospital.

The donation was due to a customer based fundraising strategy  and was eventually handed over by independent sleep specialist group Bed King. The company has played a pivotal part in supporting the Red Cross Children’s Hospital in the past. This donation however in its entirety will be used towards the upgrading of the Oncology Unit.

“We invited our customers to help us with our fundraising drive for Red Cross over the last two months and I am blown away by the support we received. A percentage of every bed we sold was collected for this purpose, and it helped us reach the total of R253 829,” says Mervyn Ewertse, founder of the independent sleep specialist group Bed King.

“Corporates have to find ways in which they can give back to communities. The plight of children is an issue close to our heart, and it was an easy decision to choose to support the Red Cross Children’s Hospital and their work in making a difference to the future generations of our nation. ” adds Ewertse.

“The Red Cross Children’s Hospital Trust has committed to raising R13,6m towards this upgrade. The 21-bed unit is home to doctors, nurses and specialists who have dedicated their lives to helping their young patients fight cancer. But most importantly, it is home to the most remarkable children you will ever meet, children who fearlessly fight a battle most adults could not. Children that need your help,” says the Trust’s CEO, Louise Driver.

The Hospital has seen an increase in the number of children admitted to the Oncology Unit, with 946 children admitted in 2006 to 1366 in 2017 and 2407 in outpatients in 2017.

Read more about the Oncology Unit and how you can support them at https://www.childrenshospitaltrust.org.za/projects/oncology-ward-upgrade-project/