Since 2014 families with children in hospital over Christmas have been able to enjoy some festive treats thanks to a wonderful project set up by a Sussex mum in memory of her son Aidan.
Parents Lucy and Simon Pond originally set up Aidan’s Christmas Dinner Project eleven years ago in memory of their little boy Aidan who sadly passed away in 2014 at just 19 months old. Their aim was to raise funds to create beautiful festive hampers and deliver them to families spending the festive season in hospitals across Sussex.
The funds raised also go towards creating a festive meal for Christmas Day, served at the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital (Royal Alex) by volunteers keen to help families and staff away from home on the day itself.
Local children’s hospital charity Rockinghorse partnered with Lucy on the project to help fundraise and recruit volunteers. This year, after ten successful years, Lucy made the decision to step back from the role and Rockinghorse have taken on all aspects of the fundraising and delivery for this amazing project.
Lucy explained, “It’s been a wonderful experience running the project for the last 10 years. To have been able to make so many families Christmas Day in hospital a little more bearable feels very special.
“And to have done it all in Aidan’s name is even more special. To think that over 750 families were given a hamper in his memory is quite remarkable as well as comforting.”Since this project began, Lucy and the team have raised over £70,000 which has meant they have delivered 765 hampers and served around 400 meals to hundreds of parents and families. The project stemmed from Lucy being in hospital with Aidan. She said, “Having spent Christmas in hospital with a sick child, I know that the hampers lift the spirits of tired and worried parents at a really difficult time.
“Year after year families contact me to say we had a hamper in 2016 or 2019 etc and we have never forgotten what it meant to receive at a really difficult time. “I will never forget Aidan’s last Christmas in hospital and the feeling of despair when we were told we could not go home for Christmas day and then having the added stress of trying to find food to make some sort of meal in the hospital. “I never wanted another family to face that, so to know that for 10 years I have provided food and a practical hamper of goodies for all those families who don’t make it home is a huge achievement and success.”The impact on all these families has been enormous. At their darkest moments they have been comforted by another family who understands more than most what it’s like to be in hospital over Christmas. This year Rockinghorse are appealing to the local community to donate to this amazing project and make sure families get that little bit of extra support at what could be a really difficult time. With your help the charity can deliver another year of support to hundreds of families who might have no idea that they will be in hospital over Christmas. They are probably planning for a lovely family celebration at home with all the normal food and gifts, but something will happen that means that suddenly those plans change and they will find themselves unable to have the Christmas they expected as they are stuck in hospital with a poorly child. Rockinghorse arrange to buy all the contents of the hampers, including delicious home-made food from Davenports Events, tea, coffee, treats and gifts, then recruit their volunteers to wrap the hampers, this year in a space kindly donated by Collinson Group in Haywards Heath. They are then delivered to the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital and Trevor Mann Baby Unit in Brighton, Special Care Baby Unit in Haywards Heath and Worthing Hospital. And on Christmas Day itself, they will arrange for another group of volunteers to assemble in the Royal Alex to serve a delicious festive meal to families and staff in the hospital to make sure no-one misses out on some delicious food despite being away from home. Fran Masey O’Neill, Project Manager at Rockinghorse, is co-ordinating this year’s project. She said, “The dedication and passion that Lucy has shown over the last ten years has been extraordinary. She has used her own difficult experience of being in hospital over Christmas to help so many other children and families.
“What she has achieved has had an enormous impact within the local community and we simply can’t thank her and her family enough for everything they have done since 2014. “All of the team here at Rockinghorse are really excited to be handed the baton of this wonderful work and we’re really looking forward to being able to help families in hospital for another ten years and more. So, if you can, please donate to help us support these families.”Rockinghorse is fundraising to provide the hampers and meals in Aidan’s memory for families in the years to come so if you would like to donate to help make sure this happens, just head over to the Aidan’s Christmas Dinner Project Just Giving page here.
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