By Aaron Cordy
GV VETS have again thrown their support behind HeartKids this June by holding its annual dress-up day to raise money for the charity on Friday, 19 June, which helps families impacted by childhood heart disease.
The not-for-profit holds a special place for the GV Vet team after veterinary nurse Katherine Byrne and her husband Elliot lost their three-month-old son Elijah to heart disease in 2018. It was HeartKids who helped the family when Elijah was in the hospital and after he passed.
“It’s nice to keep his memory alive and do something to help other people. I think that there are a lot of people travelling a similar journey, or sometimes the same journey to us, so it’s nice to be able to support other people and raise awareness, and hopefully make a difference,” said Katherine.
HeartKids supports people impacted by childhood heart disease, which is one of the largest causes of infant death in Australia. Every day, eight children are born with heart disease, and tragically, four lives are lost each week.
For the month of June, GV Vets will donate money from nail trimmings to HeartKids. They also donated $50 for each staff member who dressed up, and you can still get a raffle ticket that will be drawn on Wednesday, July 1.
Kialla Children’s Centre and St Brandan’s Primary School, where Katherine and Elliot’s other children go, have also thrown their support behind the cause.
To donate to HeartKids, visit https://bit.ly/3VKIWBa.
