In honour of Isaac's 5th birthday, please help us raise critical funds for Haven House Children's Hospice - an inspiring place that provided support, care and love for us and Isaac and continues to do the same for hundreds of families every year.

Five years ago, on 1st February 2016, our beautiful son Isaac Maxwell Brodie was born. We were blessed to have been able to spend eighteen special days with him.

Isaac was born with a mass on his brainstem that, very sadly, was untreatable and incurable. After spending ten days at GOSH, we moved to Haven House, where Isaac had his ventilator removed. The doctors had no idea if Isaac would be able to breathe on his own, but against all odds he lived for six whole days. He was a true champion, extraordinarily brave, and inspiring to be around as he fought for every extra day that he could.

Every day that we had with Isaac was a blessing and the staff at Haven House helped to make that possible, doing everything they could to give us the ability to live as 'normally' as we could with him. The care that we received throughout Isaac's short life was absolutely wonderful, and it's hard to put into words just how much of a difference this made to us, transforming an absolutely impossible time into something bearable and, at times, truly incredible.

There is one day that we spent at the hospice that was particularly special. We were able to take Isaac for a walk outside the hospice to the nearby shops, and to enjoy a cup of coffee while passers-by doted on him as we sat outside in the sunshine. The hospice provided us with the support and equipment that allowed us to venture out with our hero - our first, and only, family outing - and it's hard to express just how important and special this memory has become.

The most important gift of that Haven House gave us was the confidence and ability to make sure our little soldier was comfortable and relaxed at all times during those difficult final days. We were able to spend Isaac's last hours in private together, holding him close, singing to him, praying for him and making sure he knew he was loved and cherished more than anything.

It's hard for us to believe that Isaac would now be celebrating his 5th birthday. We miss him every day and he remains such an important part of our lives. His little brother and sister, Gabriel and Layla, talk about him all the time, and we love that they know what an important part of our family he is.

We owe Haven House and their amazing staff so much. Not only for the support they gave us during Isaac's short life, but for the ongoing support they have provided us with since then. We really feel part of the Haven House family and we hope you will help us show our appreciation to this incredible charity.

The work Haven House does is critical at all times, but especially this year. The pandemic has thrown up all sorts of new challenges for the hospice to tackle, and they've never needed all of our support more than now.

Here's the difference a donation to Haven House can make:
£25 – provides a child with a specialist sensory toy
£50 – helps provide an hour of respite during the day at the beautiful grounds, giving children like Isaac time outdoors
£100 – supports families like us through bereavement, including organising the annual Memory Day
£500 – provides a child with half a day in the Haven House family flat, a place that became ‘Home’ for Isaac and us in his final days

Thank you honouring Isaac's 5th birthday and for your continued support of this special charity.

Rachel, Steven, Gabriel and Layla

Anonymised User