Real Stories
A big bag of hope
Sometimes, you need a helping hand from someone who knows.
Alicia was 12 weeks pregnant when her four-year-old son Bronson was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Amid her shock, she remembers having to pack a bag and get straight on a plane to the children’s hospital so Bronson could start treatment. When she arrived, she realised, “I had packed all the wrong things.” But thankfully, you were there.
Alicia was given a Redkite Diagnosis Support Pack (Red Bag) and opened it to find some vouchers, toiletries, and a lot of hope. “It felt like a sign that there was somebody to help us,” she says. Real support and a virtual hug – all in one bag.
Alicia also accessed Redkite’s social work support. Redkite provides free counselling for parents and children diagnosed with cancer, and extends to their parents, carers, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, teachers, and the extended community.
“I used the counselling service probably a month or two after diagnosis. I just found that I had a lot of words I needed to say, that I needed to say them to someone that I didn’t know. I just needed to get it all off my chest and have a cry and move forward from it a little bit. And I felt a lot better after that.”
Redkite was there to help Alicia and her family when they needed it most.
“It was probably the first time we realised that it wasn’t just the people we knew that were going to help us. It was people we didn’t know, because I didn’t obviously know about any childhood charities like Redkite. I’ve had no need to know before,” Alicia says. Thanks to you, the family has gone through the tough time and Bronson finished all his treatment last August.
Thanks to you, the family has gone through the tough time and Bronson finished all his treatment last August.
Share this story
Would you like to share your story? Redkite celebrates the diversity of personal experiences and stories. The stories shared on our website include opinions that may not necessarily represent Redkite’s views.
Related stories
Cooper’s story: 20 years on and I’m still feeling the long term effects of my cancer
Over 20 years on, and Cooper is still dealing with the long-term effects of childhood cancer. “I will see a doctor once a year for the rest of my life.”
Cooper’s story: 20 years on and I’m still feeling the long term effects of my cancer
Over 20 years on, and Cooper is still dealing with the long-term effects of childhood cancer. “I will see a doctor once a year for the rest of my life.”
Counselling: “I had a lot of words I needed to say”
I just found that I had a lot of words I needed to say, that I needed to say them to someone that I didn’t know. I just needed to get it all off my chest and have a cry and move forward from it a little bit.
Counselling: “I had a lot of words I needed to say”
I just found that I had a lot of words I needed to say, that I needed to say them to someone that I didn’t know. I just needed to get it all off my chest and have a cry and move forward from it a little bit.
