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Why I donated to Derian House

Derian House was a lifeline for Paula Slater's family, after her 10 year old daughter Katy was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumour

This is a feature from Issue 10 of Charitable Traveller. Click to read more from this issue.

I thought hospices were sad places, and it took some persuasion before I made the decision for my daughter Katy to go to Derian House. But it wasn’t what I thought at all – the place has something magical about it. 

Katy would have celebrated her 21st birthday this May but when
she was just ten years old she was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour and given months to live.
She was a bright, happy and popular little girl, had just started year six and was already looking forward to high school when I noticed something wasn’t right. She had begun to have headaches, was sleeping more often and smiling less. After many trips to the hospital, an MRI scan revealed the devastating diagnosis.

I was heavily pregnant with my daughter Scarlet at the time and my other child, Charley, who was only eight years-old, was frightened and confused by what was happening.

But the incredible staff at Derian House pulled together to make sure that we all had every bit of support we needed. We spent a lot of time there as a family and we have fond memories of that time. I especially remember Jeff the Chef, who would go out of his way to make Katy’s favourite meals and special meals for us as a family. It was small things like that that kept us going.

Derian is a strangely beautiful place. We laughed a lot while we were there, especially Katy, which was so important. There wasn’t anything that the staff wouldn’t do for us. They were so nurturing and their love shone through in everything they did. I remember when they gave Charley a manager’s badge, and we all laughed when she told us she didn’t think she could handle the
responsibility.

One of Katy’s bucket list wishes was to go on a husky sled ride. Of course, we thought this was impossible – but not at Derian. We had put her list in the press and, out of the blue, a man named Nick arrived at Derian’s front door with a husky puppy named Storm. While a sled ride was out of the question, the staff welcomed Storm inside for Katy to meet. A week later, a whole load of husky puppies arrived for the children to play with. After Katy had passed away, these husky’s became known as the Team Katy Husky Huddle and they came to her funeral and howled together as we arrived. 

Derian was the place that I gave birth to baby Scarlet as Katy lay in her bed with her dad by her side, it was were Scarlet had her first bath and where my then-husband, Dave, dyed his hair Katy’s favourite colour, blue, to make her smile. And, after a long, hard battle, Derian was the place that we said goodbye to Katy. She died peacefully in a big bed with Dave and I cuddled up to her and her favourite Disney CD playing. It was very peaceful.

We wouldn’t have coped as well as we did without Derian House’s support, love, and belief in us. So to show our heartfelt gratitude, Charley, Scarlet and I are going to walk a 21-mile loop in the Lake District on Katy’s 21st birthday, to raise money for the hospice and help them continue the incredible work they do. It’s what Katy would have wanted because she always tried to help others.

A place of love

Derian house Children’s Hospice provides free respite and end of life care to children and young people in the North West. Its services cost over £5 Million a year.

This is a feature from Issue 10 of Charitable Traveller. Click to read more from this issue.