My sister works for the children’s cancer charity CLIC Sargent and it broke my heart hearing that many children and young people, including those terminally ill were running out of safe activities to do during lockdown to make these precious days meaningful. CLIC Sargent support the whole family to limit the damage cancer causes beyond health, which has never been more important than during the current pandemic.
I created a form for children supported by the charity to fill out, then made paintings using their answers and drawings.
The two paintings below were auctioned off with 100% of profit going to the charity.
Along with these two auctions, 50% of every sale from the mullenmade.com shop will be donated to CLIC Sargent during November 2020.💕
Lily’s Hedgehog
Three year old Lily chose a hedgehog as her favourite animal as she has a very lovely pet hedgehog (soft toy!) named Fluffy.
Lily was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma after two visits to A&E during lockdown shortly after her third birthday after complaining of belly ache to her parents. Following her diagnosis, the family from Wellington in Somerset, UK received practical, emotional and financial support from CLIC Sargent. She has now completed her first 18 weeks of chemotherapy and is due to have surgery to remove the remaining cancerous mass and replace her damaged ribs, before a further 10 weeks of chemotherapy and four weeks of radiotherapy.
Lily’s mum Sarah said: “CLIC Sargent has been invaluable to us as a family. Lin our, CLIC Sargent Social Worker helped us sort grants and funds. This relieved so much pressure and allowed us to focus on our number one priority - caring for Lily. CLIC Sargent’s Home from Home in Bristol, UK has been a wonderful place for us to stay while Lily undergoes treatment. We are grateful for the sanctuary it gives us at this time.”
“Our local CLIC Sargent affiliated nurses have been amazing. Lily is understandably wary of all medical people but she loves Catherine and Olivia and often talks about them, wanting to see them again. They go above and beyond to try and make this a better experience for our little girl. We have been blessed to meet such wonderful people who work for this charity. It would have felt so much lonelier without them around to support us.”
“The pandemic has made this situation tough. It’s hard anyway but when you can’t have your family around you day-to-day to help, or have access to playrooms in the hospital, it’s even harder. Our poor girl lives a quite isolated existence as she goes through her treatment. The doctors, nurses and play specialists make it as comfortable as they can for her and they do work wonders but the lack of human interaction that this pandemic has caused is just heart-breaking to see. She doesn’t know there are other children on the wards with Hickman lines or nasogastric tubes like hers. She can’t see other kids with a bald head like her. It’s hard to go through this alone. Which makes us evermore grateful for CLIC Sargent’s support. ”
Molly’s Butterfly
Six year old Molly chose a butterfly as her favourite animal and drew some wonderful drawings which have been included as the intricate detail upon the butterfly’s wings.
Molly’s three year old sister Imogen has been supported by CLIC Sargent since her ALL (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia) diagnosis of which she has completed 10 months of treatment for so far. The family from Yeovil in Somerset, UK have stayed at CLIC House, one of CLIC Sargent’s Homes from Home in Bristol which offer free accommodation close to the hospital where their child receives treatment.
Last year the CLIC Sargent care teams helped around 7,000 young cancer patients and their families from across the UK. Covid-19 has had a devastating impact on the charity, with a loss of £9 million of expected income. They receive no government funding so rely on the generosity of the public to be able to be there for families in their time of need.
If you would like to find out more about the important work CLIC Sargent do and how you can support them or make a donation, then please visit www.clicsargent.org.uk.