One of the things we love to do at Hannah’s House is support the whole family and make sure that parents can enjoy some much needed me time.
Last weekend we were able to support Riley parent’s Joy and Ben to have their first weekend away together since Riley was born seven years ago. It was their wedding anniversary, and to celebrate they wanted to attend ‘Dinner For Dreams’, the Conductive Education Charity of Western Australia’s (CEWA Foundation) major fundraiser to support children with neurological disorders and allied special needs.
Joy said that between appointments, Ben’s FIFO and Riley’s 24/7 care needs, they find it hard to find time to be a couple. But they had the best weekend and we are so happy we could support them and the lovely Riley to give them this time together.
Joy writes…
“A weekend away from the kids, especially Riley, isn’t something we could plan a week or 2 in advance. There is so much involved plus time for staff to get to know Riley and his complex care needs. At the beginning of the year, Hannah’s House recruited some amazing support workers and nurses to “Team Riley”. They help him to attend school 4 days a week and provide one nightshift a week when Ben’s away at work. It was at that time we also discussed the possibility of a weekend away for the biannual ‘Dinner for Dreams’ fundraiser (supports CEWA at Riley’s school). It also happened to be on the weekend of our wedding anniversary.
Fast forward 9 months and we were off for the long-awaited weekend with full confidence that Riley would be in the best care. Riley received round-the-clock care with his support workers during the day, who handed over to his nurse for the nightshift. They took care of his complex needs and knew all his cheeky little quirks and ways of telling them when he likes something or not, if he’s uncomfortable and what he needs when.
Supporting our family definitely takes a village. Poppy (Granddad) drove Riley and his support worker Sarah to his OT session on the weekend, and his 2.5 year old sister Zoe was kept entertained by Grandy & Yai, who kept her topped up with her favourite snacks, and playing dress ups.
We are so grateful to Hannah’s House and our family for making this happen for us. We loved the time we got to spend together, reconnecting and relaxing, which is beneficial for the whole family. Coming home and seeing how happy the kids were was evidence of the level of love and care they felt while we were away. So Thankful.”
You can support special families like Riley’s by purchasing a ticket in our Festive Raffle, find out more here.
