Amazing 11-year-old with rare illness needs your help to raise funds for Temple Street
Eleven-year-old Grace Cogan from Monaghan has been in and out of Temple Street hospital since she was a baby. Diagnosed with a rare metabolic disorder called Mucopolysaccharidosis, or Morquio Syndrome – she is only the third child in Ireland to be diagnosed with the condition – when she was just six weeks old, she knows all about the importance of feeling comfortable when you have to spend so much time in hospital – so much so, that it becomes a kind of second home.
Making the long journey from Castleblaney to North Dublin for treatment and many serious operations (she has had eleven general anaesthetics in her short life), Grace is such a familiar face around Temple Street hospital that its wards have become a great comfort to her and her family. “Temple Street to me is my comfort blanket, if there’s anything going on, if there’s something I’m worried about, it doesn't matter what it is, I can lift the phone and ring somebody. It’s like it is like a second home,” Grace's mum, Gráinne said.
The condition causes her bones to stop growing and she is at constant risk of fractures and infection. Grace summed it up herself by explaining: “It gives me pains. And it makes me smaller than everyone else and I can’t go on bouncy castles or trampolines." Given the progressive nature of the condition, her family know that they will rely on Temple Street as Grace grows up.
And so, this year, Grace is one of the faces of Temple Street's 'Trick or Treat' campaign (proudly supported by MiWadi), and she needs your help and support to encourage people all over Ireland to host a Halloween party to raise vital funds for the hospital. She even joined some of the other little patients at the hospital who dressed up as ghouls, monsters and dragons to kick-start the ghostly fun!
The generosity from the public is more important than ever so that the hospital's patients can continue to receive life-changing care; over the past two years alone, 89% of medical equipment bought for the hospital has been funded by the generosity of Temple Street supporters, making their Trick or Treat campaign evermore important.
"There are so many children just like Grace in Temple Street who need great care right now. With your support, the hospital can continue to provide world-class care to those children who need it most. From vital, life-saving equipment to ground-breaking research – your donations have the power to change little lives for the better."
Grace's amazing story is part of Temple Street Foundation's 'Living Proof' series, which was released to highlight the profound and transformative impact that donations have on the hospital, the children in its care and their families, more of which you can see below:
Chief Executive of Temple Street Foundation, Denise Fitzgerald praised Grace and her family for their brave positivity despite the undoubtedly difficult times and all the treatments that were needed. "Despite all she has been through, Grace has still found the time to become a wonderful ambassador for Temple Street – taking part in a whole host of fun fundraising activities from taking part in our Trick or Treat photos and videos. We are so grateful to her and to her parents – Gráinne and David – for sharing their incredible story with us. "
To sign up, and for more details on how to organise hair-raising Trick or Treat party for Temple Street, simply visit www.templestreet.ie/