"The biggest fear you have when you lose a child is that they will be forgotten". This sentence has run around and around in my head a million times since I heard it.
Last night I attended a reception to officially open the Global Symposium on Childhood Brain Tumours and these were the words spoken by a mother who lost her beautiful baby boy to cancer exactly two years ago.
It was a thought that I'd never even considered. I'd never had to face the prospect of losing a child and so my fears had never progressed beyond that, beyond the fear of an actual loss itself. The fear onto what now..? But for far too many families and for various different reasons, this is their reality.
I stood there in the crowd, tears streaming down my cheeks as I watched the incredible strength of both parents remember their baby boy and describe their vision for his legacy. On a day that must have been filled with such unimaginable tragedy two years ago, they now had reason to smile again. A dream of theirs had now come true; the dream of creating a Global Symposium working towards finding a cure.
At the age of two, little Elliot Parish was diagnosed with medulloblastoma and given just a 30 per cent chance of survival. Brave Elliot fought hard, but at the age of four and after a long battle, he passed away in the loving arms of his parents.
It was during Elliot's battle that his father Rick Parish, a former SAS soldier, declared war on his son's killer - childhood cancer. Realising that far too little was known about his son's condition and with so much equipment desperately needed, the Telethon Adventurers was created and began raising funds. Rick vowed not to stop until he found a cure.
Millions have been raised through his and the others efforts and with the Global Symposium now underway, the very first event of it's kind and fully funded by the Telethon Adventurers, this is one family who's unity, strength and vision is going to make an incredible difference in this world.
After last night's Reception, I came home to my own two precious children, and kissed them goodnight before sitting on the couch and allowing myself a good cry. It's so hard to find the right words to say, the right thing to do, but with the creation of this global platform, anyone can get involved and join the fight. You can either volunteer as an Adventurer or support one by making a donation online.
Medulloblastoma often strikes without warning and without discriminating, in 2013 to know so little about this disease is simply, as Rick put it, 'unacceptable'.
In a world with so much heartbreak and tragedy, it's comforting to also see it as a world full of love and hope. The Telethon Adventurers is an incredible example of the difference that you can make if you simply ask yourself: "What can you do?".
My husband is proud to be an Ambassador for this project and will be taking on an Adventurers Challenge later this year to help raise funds. I too support this project and the people behind it 100%.
Life is a gift. And this is one child and one life, who thanks to the love and dedication of his parents, will never be forgotten.
For more information visit:
Telethon Adventurers www.theadventurers.com.au
Phil Britten www.philbritten.com
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