Kia ora e te whānau, 
 
It feels like just yesterday I was writing for the Term 3 newsletter, having only been in the role for 10 days. Now, three months and one term later, time has truly flown by. Here are some highlights from this term:
 
AGM on 20th November: It was a lovely evening. Thank you to everyone who attended, shared our summary of the 2023/24 financial year, watched the video showcasing the impact of the Champion Centre, and stayed for food, drinks, and conversation.
 
Whānau Christmas Party: A huge success with 70 adults and an equal number of tamariki enjoying the amazing food provided by the Commodore Hotel, Father Christmas, face painting, and singing and dancing led by our talented Music Therapists.
 
Looking ahead to 2025, I am excited about continuing to work with the incredible team of professionals we have at the Champion Centre to ensure we are delivering the best Child Development and Early Intervention services we can, to as many children as possible. All staff will return on 27th January for a training week filled with a packed and varied programme. We look forward to welcoming whānau back on 3rd February for Term 1.
Thank you to everyone - whānau and donors - for your gifts and words of thanks during this time of year. It has been truly heartwarming.
 
Wishing you all a safe and happy Christmas and New Year.
 
Meri Kirihimete
Deb Nind

"Literally everybody jumped and said the Champion Centre, without a doubt."  

Compared to NICU, the Champion Centre was a much more calming environment for Bronwyn, despite being busy all the time. It felt like there wasn't pressure to hit certain milestones within a certain timeframe which Bronwyn appreciated. She also loved how everyone at the Centre was always looking for solutions and there was always someone around when you needed a chat. 

Today, Austin is really coming into his own. In the beginning, he would cry and refuse to leave Bronwyn's side. Now, he is going down the slide by himself, playing outside and exploring independently. This has helped Bronwyn learn to let go a little too. 

"We have kind of like a trauma bond, if you like, so it's very hard to let go. I think at the start I wouldn't have been able to leave him in another room by himself and he wouldn't have been able to leave me. So, it's been really good in that sense." 
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Not having family in Christchurch meant that the Centre provided a support system for Bronwyn and Austin. Bronwyn feels like there are always people on the family Facebook page that offer advice or help when needed, whether it is helpful tips or information around funding, there are always people to provide support. The Family Support team also play a huge role in supporting Bronwyn through hard times.

Her favourite part about the Champion Centre is watching Austin develop at his own pace.
  
"At the beginning, before I knew anything, I was so focused on him and why he is not doing everything like everyone else. People put you under a lot of pressure, like I had a lot of people telling me to pull his NGT out, as then he'll start to eat All off this made me feel like such a failure. Now I know he's on his own journey, so I'm more like let's relax and just let him explore at his own pace. I always think about a quote I saw at NICU that babies are like popcorn, they all go in the pot together yet they all pop at different stages." ​

The purpose of the Champion Foundation Trust is to build up a capital fund to generate investment income to secure a sustainable future for the Champion Centre. 

Golf Day 2024 
A lovely classic Christchurch Spring Day welcomed players to Christchurch Golf course for the Champion Foundation Trust's Golf Day on the 20th of September, sponsored by Craig's Investments. With 25 teams it was a full house, and they were greeted with wonderful goodie bags from Resene and New World Fendalton, as well as a delicious BBQ from Hellers and New World. Drinks and pies kindly donated by The Catering Department were enjoyed during the afternoon.
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A live auction and raffle were held in the evening, and we are delighted with the money raised to support the Foundation's work to provide a legacy fund. The winners were Team Commodore (long-time supporters of the Foundation and Centre). The Foundation Board and staff wish to thank all the amazing hole and auction/raffle/prize sponsors and players for coming along, enjoying the day and supporting the Foundation. Overall, $46,000 in profit was raised. Happy Christmas from the Champion Foundation Board!

Champions' Alumni - Family Fun Day
On the 3rd of November the Champion Foundation and Larcomb hosted the Champions' Alumni for their Inaugural Family and Friends Fun Day. The sun shone and Alumni enjoyed bouncy castles, face painting, hot chips, Mr Whippy and drinks as well as music from DJ Paul and the New Brighton Silver Band. One of the biggest hits was the music session put on by Kate and Georgia. The Association plans on holding this again next year and have already pencilled in the 2nd of November 2025. If you wish to make sure you are on the database (and remember you can be a friend as well as family to be considered Alumni) please email [email protected]. Happy Christmas from the Champions' Alumni Committee!

Kia ora e te whānau, 

Winter has officially arrived! I hope you're keeping warm as we head into the icy months.

I wanted to start off by saying farewell and thank you to the wonderful Lauren Porter who is moving on from her time at the Centre. Alongside her instrumental work as the Clinical Director for nearly four years, Lauren has demonstrated a huge commitment to the psychological and emotional support of the Centre parents and has been a member of many teams. Please join me in wishing Lauren all the very best in her next steps, she will be hugely missed.

I'd also like to share a big thank you to the public health nurses who have been kind enough to administer vaccinations to children and whānau attending the Centre. Throughout term 3 the public health nurses have come into the Centre to administer the flu vaccine and other catch-up vaccinations to those wanting them. Thanks to them we were able to provide a calm and familiar space for those receiving vaccinations.

We are continually grateful to all of our supporters. As a not-for-profit organisation, while we receive government support, we still need to raise over $1,000,000 per year to ensure we can continue to provide high quality services to children and families who need them. To support our fundraising efforts, the Centre is planning to complete an Annual Appeal later in the year. If you'd like to help our cause, sharing the word on what we do and getting our name out there goes a long way.

Next term we are looking forward to running a Pamper Evening, details around the date of this evening will be shared early next term. Weekly programmes will also be holding their 6 monthly Individual Planning meetings with whānau to share celebrations around their child/ren and discuss any areas of focus going forwards.

In this newsletter you can read about Natasha and Gus' story of their time at the Centre. Thank you very much to Natasha for sharing their journey with us, we wish you all the best for your future! 

There are many exciting events on the horizon so keep an eye on our Facebook and Instagram for updates.

Happy reading,

Chloe Hewitt ​

The Champion Foundation Trust is excited to announce:

A CHARITY GOLF TOURNAMENT Friday 20th September 2024 at the Christchurch Golf Club. 

12.30pm Shotgun start and BBQ and registration from 11:30am.

The tournament will be Ambrose style.

A delicious BBQ and on course drinks will be provided. 

LIVE AUCTION and light supper to follow at the club rooms.

Please see the attached flyer at end of the newsletter for further details.

We absolutely need your help to raise funds for the future sustainability of the Champion Centre and what better way than to enjoy a round of golf with friends. 

The purpose of the Champion Foundation Trust is to build up a capital fund to generate investment income to secure a sustainable future for the Champion Centre.

If you would like to register a team and enjoy an afternoon of golf while also being a champion in helping future Champion Centre children, please complete the attached editable flyer and return to [email protected] or email Steph Burdon on [email protected].

We are on the lookout for hole sponsors (hole sponsorships are $500) and auction items, so if you or your company are interested in sponsoring a hole or donating an auction item, please email Steph Burdon. 
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You can help make a difference.

Occupational Therapist Mariana came and visited Gus at our Playcentre and by early the next morning we were told that the Champion Centre had a place for Gus in an Eary Intervention Programme. For us, this gave us the reassurance and the professional support that we needed for Gus. 

When we started in the programme in 2021, we really had no idea what was happening for Gus and with time and lots of input this became much clearer. The Champion Centre helped us get a diagnosis for Gus who is Autistic. 
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The Champion Centre gave us guidance as to how we could support Gus in areas that we had no understanding of, and they have given us a community that we cherish.

Community is so important, and especially more so when you have a child with additional needs, as it can be such an isolating experience. Having people who have shared experience, I’ve found to be both cathartic and joyful. They have helped us to really understand and know him and I think as a parent there can be no greater gift.

Gus is now 5 years old, about 116cm tall and 25kg. He is a sunny, bubbly ball of energy who loves Lego, dinosaurs, The Power Rangers and Ben 10. He needs lots of sensory input in the form of the trampoline, swimming, sand pit play and slime or putty to be calm and happy.
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Gus has recently started school and the Champion Centre have been so supportive during this transition and really backed our decision in waiting to find the school that we thought would be the right fit for Gus. The transition isn’t without its challenges but knowing that we have help and support at hand is worth its weight in gold. The Champion Centre really wraps it arms around you in such a holistic approach, I really wonder why there isn’t one in every region in New Zealand.

HELP SUPPORT OUR VITAL WORK
We have continued to provide essential support to babies and young children with disabilities in Canterbury for over 46 years
The challenge to meet our $1,000,000 shortfall between government funding and our overall operating costs is ongoing. With the help of grants and generous donors we are able to provide the intervention our community has come to expect from the Champion Centre.

If you are able to support us in any way, please get in touch with us on: [email protected] or click the 'DONATE NOW' button below.

Kia ora e te whānau.
 
I hope everyone has had a good start to 2024. It is lovely to see all the children back in the building and to reconnect with all of you after the summer break.
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As you may have noticed, we have some new faces and new roles at the start of 2024. We bid farewell to our lovely Sally Mangos who retired after 20 years in the Senior Admin role. In her place we have Nic Smith, who many of you will already have said hello to. Nic is a wonderful addition to our team. Like Sally, Nic is helping us hold down the fort and make sure all the hidden (but vital) aspects of our service remain functional.
 
In January we also farewelled Wendy Entwistle. Wendy served for many years as a Social Worker with the service and then later as our Executive Director. She was a central force in our ongoing viability and vitality as a Centre. In Wendy's place, I am pleased to introduce our Interim Executive Director, Chloe Hewitt.
 
Some of you will already know Chloe, as she is one of our wonderful Speech & Language Therapists. Chloe held a leadership role in the organisation prior to Wendy's departure and has also been instrumental in the creation of new programmes, new initiatives, and the upgrading our technology. If you know Chloe, you know she is an amazing professional who is supportive, innovative, deeply kind and super smart. We feel very excited that she accepted the interim role and know that the Centre remains in good hands.
 
Both Chloe and I look forward to seeing you all as the year progresses. If ever you have questions, feel free to approach either of us.
 
Lauren and Chloe

"This is Gabriel, the youngest of our four kids and the reason we come to the Champion Centre. After 5 years of attending the Champion Centre, Gabriel transitioned to school last month. With the help and support of his team, his transition has gone very well and he’s settling into his new routines and environment. My transition on the other hand has been an absolute disaster, I’m just over here checking my emails for my plan sent to me of times and dates for my weekly scheduled visits! After coming here for five years for Gabriel’s therapy, I feel like I need to start my therapy to get over the fact that our journey here has come to an end! Needless to say, the reason we have to walk through these doors with our kids is hard, but the special people that you meet here, make it very hard to walk out of them. 

I often think of life like a puzzle. As we go along, we add pieces to it and our picture develops over time as we have new experiences and new memories are made. As with an actual puzzle, some pieces are easy to find, like if you’re doing a night sky or a garden, it’s easy to find pieces for the moon or flowers. But some pieces, like the sky or grass, are harder to figure out where the right pieces fit together. Life seems likes that too, where some experiences are easy and effortless and other experiences are more challenging and take longer to figure out how they fit.

The day Gabriel was born, should’ve been an easy piece to put into our puzzle, and yet it felt like someone came along, turned it upside down and threw it on the floor, leaving the pieces shattered everywhere. After Gabriel was born, we discovered he was having issues breathing, feeding and some other issues.

After a few hospital visits we were home with a newborn baby on cpap at night, a feeding tube and a profound level of exhaustion. Instead of this being the happy time it should be, it was a time consumed with grief, heartache, confusion and severe anxiety. I had no idea how to begin finding the pieces to start building our puzzle again and all the pieces seemed dark and impossible. When Gabriel was five months old, we were referred to the Champion Centre and after having a few sessions with Marguerite and the amazing team in the baby group, I felt like I had found a bright light in my puzzle amongst all the very dark pieces.

After a five-year journey at the Champion Centre, it feels like it has become part of our family. We have three older kids, who are now 19, 18, and 12. Every week the kids ask, “what did Gabriel do today?”. They ask about his therapists or social workers by name as if they’re part of our family. They have all been very involved in Gabriel’s journey here. They enjoyed coming along when they could to his sessions and getting to know the special people involved in his various therapies. When Zac came along, he loved the tea times, where he would send in his tea order, and then sit and have lengthy chats to the therapists or to Paula one of the social workers.

When Gaberiel was three years old, and we started looking at sending him to Kindy, we were blessed to have Margaret went above and beyond to make his transition to Kindy an amazing experience, with her guidance we found the perfect place for him to attend, and he absolutely loved his time there and thrived under her care. I have hundreds of photos on my phone that she would send to show me what Gabriel did in the day and messages back and forth every Monday and Wednesday evening without fail. Besides the fact that Margaret had long days, she always made time for me and allowed me the space to be open and vulnerable with how I was doing. She showed me unending patience as I can’t even count the number of times, she’s hugged me after I’ve cried with her, and her kindness, honesty and compassion got me through some really rough days. We all just love her and again we all felt like she is an integral part of our family. The kids ask every year if Margaret can come to us for Christmas. I have to tell them, “You know, Margaret does have her own family too”, which is usually followed by a long stare and reply. “So, can she come for Christmas or not?”. I don’t think I could ever find the words to thank Margaret enough for the gift that she has been to Gabriel and our family.

As time came close to transition Gabriel from Kindy and the Champion Centre, we began to look at school options for him. After visiting a few schools with Beccy, we decided that for now, Ferndale would be the best place for him. Beccy did our ORS application and thankfully he was accepted for that funding. We are so grateful for all Beccy’s help with that process, and once again without her guidance, knowledge and help, we would be lost trying to find out way forward in his school years without her. There are so many challenges we face daily with Gabriel, having to navigate this system, how it works, how to get funding, I just don’t know how anyone would do it without the help and level of support we get here. With Beccy, Margaret and the Ferndale staff, his transition to school has gone so well and so far, he’s doing great in his new environment, although most days he asks if he’s going to see Margaret or Beccy. He’s probably also wondering if they’re coming for Christmas.

After coming to the Champion Centre for a while, I started wondering how they find al these amazing people who work here? From the minute you walk through those doors, you just feel loved and special. I think the interview process must go something like this, assuming Wendy or Lauren do the interviews?

Wendy/Lauren: “How would you rate your amazingness out of 10?”
Applicant: “About 9.5/10”
Wendy/Lauren: “Nope, you’re out! Sally, call in the next one please. We require a minimum of 10/10 for being amazing to work here people!”

I’m obviously joking, and know it doesn’t go down like that, but honestly, how is it possible to have so many people working in one place who all get 10/10 for amazingness?

We have learnt so much from the therapists over the last five years on how to help Gabriel in all areas of his development. So many tips, advice and different ways to help him learn and engage in activities. Who knew there could be a song sung with such excitement about what’s in a bucket? And don’t every underestimate how many different types of swings they can hang from the ceilings, just when you think you’ve tried them all, out comes another one!

When our other kids were little, they played with dolls and Lego and all the typical toys. With Gaberiel, we’ve had to learn ways to help him play with toys and understand what to do with them. Sitting in a big tub of rice or beans and playing with toys whilst he sits in the tub has been one of the things, we learnt that we really enjoyed. Now when people come around, they ask, “why do you have that big tub of rice and beans?”. I’m just like, what? You don’t have tubs of rice and beans for your kids to play in? That’s weird! All these things are our new normal now and Gabriel continues to make progress on his own timeline.

This year, I had the privilege of being part of the Mum’s support group run by Lauren and Marguerite. I hadn’t felt up to going for one-on-one counselling since Gabriel was born. But when the opportunity came up to go to the group, knowing Marguerite and Lauren were running it, I knew I need to be part of it. Again, the experiences allowed me to find pieces to our puzzle, and as the weeks went by, I began to feel a sense of peace and gratitude as it was such a beautiful space for me and the four other beautiful Mums to share our journey’s. It was a time of connecting, learning, and being vulnerable, growing, crying and laughing. Hearing the insights and thought-provoking questions from Lauren and Marguerite, brought so much healing and peace, and they opened up a special space for us to feel safe to be vulnerable and share things we haven’t shared with many others. Hearing the other Mum’s journeys and thoughts and perspectives helped me to feel less alone and connected as we journey this life together and learn from each other. I know the special connections we have made will continue on for years to come and I hope other Mums who come through those doors will have this much needed experience too.

Every therapist, every social worker, every person on the admin staff, and of course Margaret, make you feel safe. They make you feel like your child has value in this world, where the world often tells us they don’t. Nothing in this life has challenged every part of me as a human being as having a child with a disability. It’s taken me to the darkest place in my mind that I never knew existed. The new voices in my head reminding me of fears I can’t always rationalize and questions no one can really answer.

Over the last five years I have been able to find pieces to create our puzzle again. It’s been slow and long and hard, and it looks vastly different to the puzzle we had before. But the Champion Centre will forever be a big part of our picture. It will always be a part of our conversations, the people we have met will always be held in a special place in our hearts, the memories of the time spent here will be etched in our minds forever, I just can’t imagine going through these last five years without this place. It would’ve been so much darker, so much harder and so much more isolating.
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The kids that come through those doors face so many different challenges, each one is unique and special and each one a real little champion. The people inside this building, who receive them week after week, they have the hearts of those champions and are the real heroes in the world. I know that we’ll always be a part of the Champion Centre family, and when I need a place of solace or peace, a hug, a smile or a comforting word, I know I’ll always find these things behind those sliding doors."

​Thank you for taking the time to read our Newsletter.
Don't forget to follow us on Instagram and Facebook to help spread awareness of the amazing work here at the Champion Centre. 
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As 2023 draws to a close, we can say without a doubt that our year has been busy and fruitful. A total of 207 tamariki and their whānau joined us at the Champion Centre. We farewelled 45 children, as they began their school journey, and our Early Intervention Educators supported 66 children in their local early childhood centres. 

At our recent AGM we were reminded once again of how special the Champion Centre is, and of its important place in our community. Three Mums of recent ‘graduates’ spoke from the heart about the challenges of their own personal journeys of raising a child with disabilities - the joys their children bring, and the unique and vital support offered by the Champion Centre and our staff. It was a privilege for all in attendance, (supporters, families and staff), to hear these personal accounts. Thank you to Chelsea, Julie and Natasha for your contributions. 

In this newsletter you can read about ‘Noah’s Journey’. We are grateful to Cassie for sharing with us the impact that the Champion Centre has had for her son Noah and their family. You can also read more about the new Champions’ Alumni, an exciting new initiative for all associated with the Champion Centre past and present. 

As we enter the festive season, we wish to thank all of our supporters who have contributed to the success and operations of the Champion Centre. Without your ongoing generosity we could not provide the comprehensive services we do. It is our supporters, our whānau and our staff who make our Champion Centre community ever stronger.  

Wishing everyone a relaxing and safe holiday season. 
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Wendy and Lauren

We have continued to provide essential support to babies and young children with disabilities in Canterbury for over 46 years.

The challenge to meet our $700,000 shortfall between government funding and our overall operating costs is ongoing. With the help of grants and generous donors we are able to provide the intervention our community has come to expect from The Champion Centre.
​
If you are able to support us in any way, please get in touch with us on: [email protected] or click the 'DONATE NOW' button below.

The importance of family support at the Champion Centre – A one-stop shop
“I can’t speak highly enough of the family support offered to me before I had even stepped into the Champion Centre. The Social Work Team and the in-house counselling have just been so helpful. As a mother to a child with high needs, my own needs do tend to come last, and my own wellbeing can get lost in the rush of things. It took me some time to realise that I had been prioritising Noah’s health and wellbeing, while ignoring my own needs, and if I’m not OK, I can’t be there for him. I am encouraged and supported during my Champion Centre journey by someone from within the organisation who is close enough to understand my situation and struggles. This has meant the support is not disjointed and is much more personally tailored to my needs. 
I’ve also recently attended a Mum’s Support Group at the Champion Centre which was incredibly beneficial. Again, it was provided onsite and facilitated by staff who understand what the journey of having a child with disabilities can be like. This makes a huge difference.” 
Looking back at where we’ve come from – Noah’s developmental progress
“It is amazing to have a team working alongside Noah to cheer with me and celebrate his wins. The individualised forward planning of the therapists at the Champion Centre has helped Noah to excel and reach exciting developmental milestones. He is running, riding a balance bike, climbing, and always making people laugh with his witty sense of humour; while his speech is delayed, he has amazing receptive language and understanding, and is able to communicate with sign language. There are so many things to celebrate!” 

We’re grateful to Cassie for sharing her reflections. ​

THE PASSING OF CHLOE WRIGHT
It is with much sadness we acknowledge the death of Chloe Wright in September 2023.  Chloe was co-founder of the Wright Family Foundation, a charitable trust, Chloe was a huge advocate for mothers and babies and her life's work revolved around this, leaving a lasting legacy.  The Wright Family Foundation and Chloe Wright were a major funder and supporter of the book Earlybird, a children's book published by the Champion Foundation Trust.  For those of you not familiar with Earlybird, it tells the story of Peri the Pukeko who was born a little too early and details his birth story, resonant with the birth story of many premature babies born in New Zealand.  Earlybird is provided free of charge to families with a premature baby in one of the six NICUs throughout New Zealand as well as being sold online through the Champion Foundation Trust website (see www.championfoundation.co.nz). All profits from the sale of Earlybird go to the Champion Centre.  It was through Chloe Wright's support, her belief in the book, and funding from the Wright Family Foundation that enabled this book to be published.

Wishing you and your whānau a Merry Christmas & a Happy New Year. See you all in 2024!

Whatever the season, The Champion Centre is always buzzing with activity: play; movement; singing and the achievement of new milestones. While it’s been very warm and cosy at the Centre during these Winter weeks, we can’t wait for Spring when we will be able get outside, into our beautiful playground!

One of the fundamental principles underpinning our work at The Champion Centre is the partnership between parents and staff. Staff bring their skills and expertise together with parents’ understandings of their children, and the goals they have for them. It’s this partnership which creates the highly individualised programmes for each child. We are privileged to see this partnership in action every day, and the commitment demonstrated by staff and parents to their tamariki.

Equally important are the relationships made between families. In this edition of Connect we are grateful to Emma, Jonty’s Mum, for sharing her family's journey. She touches on how helpful it is to connect with other Mums. We’re also keen to share with you a new initiative, born from one Mum's drive to support others.
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And finally, we’re proud to share with you the launch of a new book on Prematurity. This is a joint initiative by The Champion Centre and The Champion Foundation Trust.

Happy Reading,

Lauren and Wendy

Jonty playing at The Champion Centre with 2 of his best mates

Recently the Champion Foundation Trust, in partnership with The Champion Centre, launched a "Position Paper on Prematurity in Aotearoa New Zealand" at Parliament and here in Christchurch. This important paper summarises the up-to-date research evidence that guides best practice for babies and children born prematurely. It also draws on the work of the Champion Centre’s monitoring, assessment and intervention programme for children born premature and their families which provides support for baby/parent dyads as soon as possible after they leave the Neonatal Unit at hospital and continues until school entry for children born either less than 32 weeks gestational age or for those with other risks.
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The launch event at Riccarton House in Christchurch was attended by many local clinicians and supporters. Dr Patricia Champion, founder of the Champion Centre and Co-Author, spoke eloquently about the research and implications for practice. We were also honoured to hear from past parents Rachel and Jason who shared their journey with their daughter Jessica (now age 13), who was born prematurely and attended The Champion Centre. They spoke of how early intervention at the beginning of Jessica’s life made all the difference and she is now thriving and achieving great things. You can read more about the Prematurity Paper here:  https://www.championfoundation.co.nz/research.html
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​Thank you for taking the time to read our Newsletter and we're looking forward to updating you again in Term 4!

Connecting with Others at The Champion Centre
Parents and caregivers tell us that in addition to their child’s therapy, one of the important things about coming to The Champion Centre are the connections they and their children make with other families. Connecting with others who share an understanding of some of the challenges of parenting children with disabilities or developmental challenges can be incredibly supportive and helpful.

Morning Tea
Never underestimate the value of morning tea! Each morning at The Champion Centre, our programmes pause for Morning Tea. Staff provide good coffee, tea and biscuits for parents and caregivers while children sit together at the kai table. It’s a time when parents can chat with one another and with staff in an informal way, share information and experiences while taking a break.

And some of our wonderful supporters certainly understand the value of morning tea. We’d like to give a big ‘shout out’ to Burnside Women’s Institute for their recent generous donation of numerous packets of biscuits. Thanks very much ladies, we appreciate you!

Mum’s Support Group
We are currently offering a 6-week mothers’ support group. This is a relaxed group which offers a safe and supported space to reflect on experiences and feelings alongside others walking a similar path. For Mums who attend the Champion Centre it is co-facilitated by Lauren Porter and Marguerite Wilson. We’re also looking at offering a Dad’s Group if there is interest.

​We're on Instagram!
Please follow us on our new Instagram page: The Champion Centre (@champion_centre)

Once a week we have had the pleasure of welcoming Hannah, and her two year old daughter, Eva to The Champion Centre.  After a rough start to life, Eva is making leaps and bounds in her development thanks to a great partnership between her whānau and our therapists.  

Only minutes after Eva was born, doctors started to notice something wasn’t quite right. Eva was unable to swallow.  Two hours later Eva was diagnosed with Oesophageal Atresia, indicating that her oesophagus was not connecting to her stomach, and she required surgery the next day.

Immediately after her operation, Eve started to recover well, but soon began having seizures. After further investigations, including an MRI, doctors confirmed Eva had experienced a stroke and she was referred to The Champion Centre.

It was a very difficult time for Hannah who was receiving a range of new and different diagnoses for Eva, including Hypotonia (low body tone), complications from her feeding tube, developmental delay, Torticollis (twisted or tilted neck) and unresponsiveness to sound. It seemed like the hospital were continually coming to her with more potential issues, but with no solid solutions or positives for her to hold on to.
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Hannah recalls dreading her first visit to The Champion Centre. She had a growing concern about Eva being treated like a number and she did not want to come to another ‘facility’ to learn of more things Eva might struggle with or not be able to do. 

Thankfully, this would not be the case. Eva began her journey at The Champion Centre with “plenty of physiotherapy” from Deborah. Hannah was glad to learn that rather than the hospital’s focus on “what’s wrong”, Deborah and the Champion Centre team encouraged her to instead focus on all the things Eva was doing really well.  With more visits to the Centre and further support, Hannah started to see very clearly all the improvements Eva was making and took time to “celebrate the good things” she had learnt with the help of early intervention.

With The Champion Centre’s holistic approach, Hannah was able to shift some of her anxiety about Eva’s future.  She was now able to see just how many positive milestones she was reaching quickly, and that most of her additional needs were resolving with specialised help. 

Hannah had heard of The Champion Centre through a family friend before attending, but she wasn’t aware of the variety of programmes we offer to help with children’s development.  She speaks highly of the Champion Centre and sees a bright future for Eva.  She says, “we are so grateful to have The Champion Centre” and “I wouldn’t be where I am now without The Champion Centre”. If Hannah has any questions or concerns about Eva’s development, big or small, she doesn’t hesitate to bring them to the team and get the answers she needs. 
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Hannah and our therapists now agree that Eva’s development is right on track, so much so that Eva will be transitioning to our monitoring programme which requires less frequent visits to the Centre. Eva has now exceeded everyone’s expectations and Hannah is grateful to have The Champion Centre supporting her the whole way.  

Thank you Hannah for sharing your journey with us ❤

Our partners at the Champion Foundation Trust* have been lucky to be named to receive a donation from Matthew Rose of Jarden. Mathew completed his amazing walk of the Te Araroa Trail earlier this month. This very personal journey was combined with raising funds for 10 local charities. One of which being the Champion Foundation. Matthew had this to say shortly after he finished the trail:

"And so after 68 days and well over 1,400kms of trail walking, late on Friday afternoon I reached the end of the road. The final milestone - Stirling Point, Bluff. It was emotional, yet celebratory. I was ready to finish, yet not. During the mayhem, I quietly slipped away and walked down to the sea, slipping my hand into the waters of Foveaux Strait, and reminiscing about the same simple act done before starting at Ship Cove. It afforded me a peaceful, solitary moment for reflection on my achievement. The old adage rang loud and true - it is the journey, not the destination."
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A sincere thank you to Matt from the Foundation and the Champion Centre too!
*The Champion Foundation Trust raises money for the long-term future of The Champion Centre.
​Matt's Good Walk | Te Araroa Trail Fundraiser (mattsgoodwalk.nz)

Thank you for taking the time to read our Newsletter and we look forward to welcoming everyone back in Term 3!

DIRECTORS KŌRERO

2023 at The Champion Centre began with much excitement and anticipation as staff and families reconnected after the long summer break. It’s been a busy and fruitful term. We’ve welcomed new families, we’ve waved children off to school, and we’ve continued to join whānau to support them and their children’s development.

In this edition of Connect we have a number of items of interest to celebrate and share with you:

We are keen to shine the light on one of our new offerings at The Champion Centre - Lego Therapy. We are now running Lego Therapy groups each term for small numbers of children who will benefit. You can read more about this new development and its impact here.

We thank Lu, who generously shares her personal ‘story’ and her thoughts and feelings about coming to The Champion Centre with her son Alfie. 

​And we are continually grateful to all of our supporters. As a not-for-profit organisation, while we receive government support, we still need to raise over $600,000 per year to ensure we can provide the full range of services to families who need them. We meet this challenge by applying for grants, and through the generosity of a range of supporters and donors. One of our supporters is Matt Rose who is walking from the top of the South Island to the bottom to raise money for a range of charities including The Champion Foundation Trust. You can read more about Matt’s trip in this edition of Connect. 

​If you or someone you know has a fundraising idea or would like to donate to The Champion Centre, please contact Tracey Horsham on [email protected]. Tracey would love to hear from you.

Happy reading!

​Lauren and Wendy