Connect 17

We would like to dedicate this issue of our newsletter to Dr Terry Caseley. We recently learned of Dr Caseley's passing and wish to acknowledge his great contribution to our centre and honour his work.

Dr Caseley was a dedicated Paediatrician who served the children and families of Christchurch for many years. He was also instrumental in supporting Dr Patricia Champion to establish the Champion Centre over 45 years ago. Terry and Patricia shared a fundamental belief that every child - regardless of physical, cognitive or social capacity - has the right to be educated, to learn, grow and reach their individual potential. This philosophy remains the foundation of the Champion Centre today. Without Dr Caseley’s huge contribution to establishing and supporting the Champion Centre, we would not be who we are today. We send our heartfelt condolences to his family.

Nearly five decades on, The Champion Centre continues to deliver our early intervention programmes. Every week, our multi-disciplinary teams join children with their parents and caregivers, attending to all aspects of the child’s development. The programmes take a holistic approach to development, always starting with each child's unique strengths and capabilities, and building a holistic approach together with the parents and whānau. We work together throughout the years, from birth through to school.

At this time of year, winter is in the air and we near the end of another term. Matariki too will soon be here. Twinkling in the winter sky, Matariki (the cluster of stars) marks the beginning of a new year in the Māori lunar calendar. For Māori, the appearance of Matariki signals a time of remembrance, joy and peace. It’s a time for communities to come together and celebrate.

We wish to acknowledge all of our hard-working staff, the children and whānau who join us, and all of our supporters who help make it possible for us to continue our work. Thank you. We are a community worth celebrating.

In this edition of Connect, we are delighted to share Eva and Hannah’s story. We are grateful to Hannah for sharing Eva's journey, from birth to her joining us at the Champion Centre and the progress and reflections on their time together with us. You can also read about Matt Rose’s inspiring ‘Good Walk’ which raised over $236,569 for a number of charities, including the Champion Foundation Trust. 

Happy Reading!

​Wendy and Lauren

CENTRE HAPPENINGS

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.

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HANNAH AND EVA'S STORY

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.

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. 

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 ❤

MATT'S GOOD WALK

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."

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)