Summer Newsletter 2015

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Other ways to donate By phone: Online: By text:

Call us on 0800 018 6013 www.dreamscometrue.uk.com/donate Text ‘DCTC01£5’ to 70070 to donate

Thank you!

Dreams Come True Exchange House 33 Station Road Liphook Hampshire GU30 7DW T: 01428 726330 F: 01428 724953 E: info@dreamscometrue.uk.com Freephone: 0800 018 6013 www.dreamscometrue.uk.com Registered as a Charity in England and Wales (800248) and in Scotland (SC043878)

summer 2015

newsletter Dream Tea issue!

Welcome

It’s time for tea!

With our 3rd annual Dream Tea just around the corner, it’s an incredibly busy time here at Dreams Come True.

We’re busy getting the bunting out for our 3rd annual Dream Tea and this year promises to be bigger and better than ever!

Dream Tea is a vital part of our fundraising calendar so we do hope you will get involved in any way you can. Whether it’s selling a few cakes at work, or organising a street party, you really can “make a cuppa and make a difference”

Schools, companies, community groups and even a few celebrities are getting ready to put the kettle on and change young lives with a cuppa.

In the last few weeks, we’ve also been busy giving some of the children we support and their families the chance to meet up.

Dream Tea is our biggest fundraising event.

Every cake and every cuppa you sell can help us to fulfil dreams for children and young people with life-limiting conditions.

We love hosting these special group events because they enable families to build friendships and support networks with others in a similar situation.

In April, 48 children and their families joined us for a private party at Hamleys in London.

Children enjoyed exclusive access to all five floors of the world-famous toy store, complete with puppet shows, magic tricks and a whole host of Disney characters.

In addition, a group of children and their families have just returned from a wonderful trip to Disneyland and Universal Studios in Florida. These unique accompanied group holidays take quite some organising by our highly experienced team but it is truly worthwhile to see the joy they bring to so many children with serious and life-limiting conditions.

Alongside all this activity, our main focus remains on making dreams come true, so you will also read about some of the children and

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Will you be joining in from 15th - 21st June?

young people we have helped recently.

You will see on page 11 our latest appeal to fulfil 3-year-old Dewi’s dream to meet his favourite Disney characters. You can help by making a donation using the form on the back page of this newsletter.

And finally... an appeal of a different kind.

Could you support our work in a governance capacity? We are keen to hear from parents of children with serious and life-limiting conditions and also professionals working in paediatric health and social care. Please email peter@dreamscometrue.uk.com for further information.

You’ve never had a better excuse to enjoy a bit of cake, so please support Dream Tea in any way you can; however big or small.

Don’t worry if the dates don’t work for your diary - you can hold your own Dream Tea anytime. It’s simply about gathering a few friends to enjoy tea and cake for a great cause.

Join us on Facebook and Twitter to share your tea tales, get the latest updates, pick up celebrity recipes and more...

15th - 21st June 2015* *or anytime that suits you!

Make a cuppa, make a difference

Thank you, as always, for you generosity and support.

With warmest wishes

Get involved...

Peter Newman, Chief Executive

www.dreamscometrue.uk.com/dreamtea

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Lexington Catering

Savills

Award-winning contract catering company Lexington know a thing or two about baking and always support Dream Tea in style!

We’d like to say a huge thanks to last year’s Savills Graduate Charity Committee for their dedication and hard work, which raised a staggering £60k through a variety of imaginative activities.

The team are once again gearing up to delight offices throughout London with cakes and fancies, which will include a signature Dream Tea cake created specially for the occasion.

Once again, Lexington will donate the proceeds of their activities to Dreams Come True so we’d like to say a big thank you in advance (and we can’t wait for the leftovers!)

The new 2015/16 committee are already working hard to make the forthcoming year an even greater success and we can’t wait to see their plans unfolding.

Lexington’s mini Victoria Sponges specially created for Dream Tea... yum!

“To be involved with Dreams Come True is an honour. The whole team are gearing up for the madness and mayhem of Dream Tea and we can’t wait!"

Mike Sunley, founder and Managing Director, Lexington Catering

Thank you Savills. You are amazing!

Corporate fundraiser Jo Sorg with last year’s dynamic Savills Graduate Charity Committee.

“We are delighted to support Dreams Come True for the second consecutive year.

It is our hope to build upon the successes and not only raise a substantial sum, but also increase awareness of the charity throughout all Savills offices.”

Charlotte Orrell, Savills Grauduate Charity Comittee

Could we be your next charity of the year?

Good governance

Do you work for a company that supports charity? If so, please consider nominating Dreams Come True for your organisation’s next chosen charity.

Could you support our work in a governance capacity? We would love to hear from you.

We really value our corporate supporters, so if you know a business that might enjoy a fulfilling and highly rewarding charity partnership, we’d love to hear from you!

We would particulalry like to engage with parents of children with serious and life-limiting conditions. We are also keen to hear from people with a professional background in the paediatric health and social care sectors.

Please contact Jo Sorg on 01428 726330 or email jo@dreamscometrue.uk.com

Please contact Peter Newman on 01428 726330 or peter@dreamscometrue.uk.com.

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Joanna - 16 years on

Hope’s family reunion

We first met Joanna Cleeve when she was a very poorly nine year old, undergoing treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

Hope is a very brave two-year-old girl who was born with a life-threatening heart defect. She has already undergone vital heart surgery and will need another operation soon.

Sixteen years later and quite by chance, we booked Joanna as our official photographer for a celebrity Dream Tea hosted by ITV’s Laura Hamilton.

Joanna’s dream all those years ago was to meet the band Steps. As a complete surprise, Dreams Come True arranged for Joanna to be taken to the ITV studios to meet the band on the set of SMTV live hosted by Ant and Dec. She had no idea that Steps were appearing and was absolutely thrilled when she was taken to meet them in the green room.

Joanna was ill for two years and had to undergo intensive treatment, including chemotherapy. She lost her hair and looking back, Joanna admits that the illness knocked her confidence. It was only when she held a camera that her mum noticed she became a different person.

Her interest led to a two-year photography course and Joanna is now building a reputation as a very talented professional photographer.

Joanna couldn’t believe it when Dreams Come True called and gave her the opportunity to do her first celebrity photo shoot.

As she said, “You’ve made my dream come true all over again!” www.joannacleevephotography.co.uk

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In April, we arranged for Hope and her mum, Leanne, to visit Hope’s grandparents in South Africa, whom she had never met.

Then... Joanna meeting Steps back in 1999

“My dream was an amazing day and gave me a real boost after going through some gruelling treatment” Now... Joanna is an emerging talent

Hope’s grandparents can’t travel, so Hope had only ever ‘met’ them via Skype. As mum said when she wrote to us, “We would love to introduce our little miracle to them in person.”

The family reunion holiday was everything they could have wished for and more and provided a wonderful distraction from the hospital appointments and impending operation. It was a welcome change of scenery from medical rooms and was perfect medicine for all the family.

The trip was made even more meaningful when the family found out on their return that Hope’s surgery was going to be more extensive then previously thought.

Their time spent together as a family will never be forgotton.

“Hope is a true little fighter though, so I have no doubt that she will conquer as many obstacles that she can.

We had an absolutely wonderful time, and the time we got to spend together as a family will never be forgotten. Needless to say, there were a lot of tears when we left. ” Hope’s mum, Leanne.

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Meet Madeleine...

Hamleys

Our youngest Dream Champion!

Thank you once again to Hamleys for enabling us to host our 3rd annual red carpet event in their world famous London store.

10-year-old Madeleine was so inspired watching her aunty run the 2015 London Marathon for charity, she has since roped the whole family into a series of fundraising activities for Dreams Come True.

As well as holding a Dream Tea event, Madeleine will be running a 5K. Mum and Dad will also be getting their trainers on and even her younger brother and sister will be taking part in a 1K run.

Introducing...

Katie Jones - fundraising and events Katie joined the team last month and literally hit the ground running as her first event was helping with our London Marathon team!

“Working at Dreams Come True is something very special. Hearing the dream stories and seeing the difference our work makes to a child’s life really is inspiring and I am grateful to be a part of it.”

Dawn Malan - Scotland development officer Dreams Come True is proud to be very active in Scotland, both fundraising and fulfilling dreams for local children and young people.

Based in Aberdeen, Dawn has recently joined us to manage our Scottish events programme and develop our volunteer network.

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We were delighted to welcome 48 children with serious and life-limiting conditions and their families to enjoy private access to all five floors, packed full of magicians, Disney characters, face painters and more.

Community Fundraiser, Sarah Kirby, meets Madeleine.

The event was also attended by supporters, including our celebrity Dream Tea ambassador, Laura Hamilton with her husband Alex and little son Rocco, who loved playing with the teddy bears!

A big Gruffalo welcome for our young guests!

It was wonderful to hear the squeals of delight and laughter as the children explored the store and we’ve since received dozens of thank you messages from families.

It was also a wonderful and memorable way for families to meet and bond with others who are facing similar challenges.

ITV’s Laura Hamilton and her family

Sponsored by We’d like to say a huge thank you to Lexington Catering for supporting this year’s event at Hamley’s. Your generosity helped us really put the icing on the cake!

Could you sponsor our Hamley’s event next year? If you are interested in corporate sponsorship for this or any other event, please contact Sue Fowler on 01428 726330

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Events Calendar June

15-21st 20th 28th

Dream Tea World Record Skydive Surrey Sportive

August

2nd 16th

Prudential Ride London-Surrey 100 Surrey Sportive

September

13th

Morrisons Great North Run

October

4th

Bournemouth Marathon

11th

Chicago Marathon

25th

Morrisons Great South Run

31st

Zombie Run, London

November

1st

New York Marathon

January 2016

7th - 10th

Walt Disney World Marathon, Florida

Our latest appeal Dewi Dewi has cerebral palsy but this doesn’t stop him being a very lively and playful threeyear-old.

Because Dewi has very limited mobility, he can’t enjoy many of the physical play activities that other children take for granted and relies more on indoor enjoyment particularly watching his favourite Disney characters for hours on TV.

We can also organise bespoke challenges for private groups, including:

Dewi absolutely adores Olaf, Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Buzz Lightyear and The Incredibles. To meet them in real life would be a dream come true.

• Three Peaks 24hr Challenge • London to Paris Bike Ride • Skydives at your local airfield

With your help, we would love to send Dewi to Disneyworld in Florida to meet his Disney idols in person.

For more information about events, please call our events team on 01428 726330 or email events@dreamscometrue.uk.com

Follow Us! Twitter: @dreamer654 Facebook: Dreamer654 Pinterest:

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boots), night time gators (car pads), and his wheelchair are cool accessories to help him run faster.”

However,as Dewi is getting older, he’s beginning to ask why he can’t run as fast as other kids and why they don’t have space boots like him.”

Dewi’s older sister Menna, aged 8, helps him so much with everyday activities, it would make one of her many dreams come true too.

If you would like to help make Dewi’s dream come true, please complete and return the donation form overleaf, or donate via our website: www.dreamscometrue.uk.com/donate

This once-in-a-lifetime trip would give the whole family a chance to relax and take a break from the regime of hospital appointments, therapies and the day-to-day management of services to get Dewi the support he needs.

Life has been particularly stressful for the family recently as Dewi is starting to understand the impact of his disabilities.

As Mum says; “Until recently Dewi has been oblivious to the limitations his condition puts on him. He thinks his splints (space

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