Family moves mountain in memory of newborn son
A bereaved couple who were joined by 25 family members and friends to conquer the highest mountain in Wales have raised over £22,000 for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, in the memory of their son, who sadly passed away at just three-days-old.
Prashant and Lauren Desai, from Sutton Coldfield, climbed right to the summit of Snowdon to raise the funds and give back to Birmingham Children’s Hospital in their baby boy, Rudi’s, name, for the care their family received during the toughest three days of their lives.
Rudi’s birth was traumatic and as soon as he entered the world at Lauren and Prashant’s local hospital, it became clear he couldn’t breathe and that his airways hadn’t developed correctly. Doctors tried their best to intubate Rudi but he needed specialist treatment and within 30 minutes, he was being rushed by critical care ambulance to Birmingham Children’s Hospital, with only Prashant by his side while Lauren was rushed into theatre herself.
As soon as Rudi arrived at Birmingham Children's Hospital he was rushed to theatre too, where surgeons performed a tracheostomy, creating a hole in Rudi’s trachea so that he could be ventilated to help him breathe.
To Prashant’s relief, the operation went well and Rudi was admitted to the hospital’s Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) to continue his care. The next day, Lauren was discharged and was able to join her husband and son at the Children’s Hospital. Sadly though, Rudi took a turn for the worse with his oxygen levels getting lower and lower and Prashant and Lauren were told they should begin saying their goodbyes to their newborn son. Shortly after, Rudi slipped away in his parents loving arms.
Though Prashant and Lauren spent only a couple of days at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, the impact Rudi’s care, and the help they received as parents during such an upsetting and stressful time left a lasting impact, and the couple knew they wanted to give back. After a suggestion from Lauren’s cousin, Phoebe, the couple rallied their family and friends to sign up for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity’s Snowdon Sunrise Trek and set themselves hefty fundraising targets.
By the time the trek came around, the family were ready but the weather had other ideas and high winds on the mountain meant it would be unsafe to make their journey. The family team felt deflated but their trek was rescheduled and Prashant and Lauren agreed to take on their own trek with anyone who couldn’t make the new date.
Prashant said: “Losing Rudi was the most devastating experience, but we took comfort in the support we received from the incredible staff at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, who did all they possibly could for him, as well as taking care of us. We wanted to fundraise to say thank you and to help support other families on the worst days of their lives.
“Even on our rearranged trek date, the weather was foul with lashing rain and biting cold – we just had to get to the top and back again – but the support we received from everyone who sponsored us and keeping Rudi in our minds helped us push on.”
Annie Eytle, Head of Public Fundraising at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “Prashant and Lauren faced the unthinkable and we’re incredibly grateful that through their grief they chose to support our hospital and the teams who cared for them and for baby Rudi.
“The phenomenal amount Prashant, Lauren and their family and friends have raised will go on to help us support countless families, just like theirs, when they need us most.”
If you’ve been inspired and would like to fundraise for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, or donate, please visit bch.org.uk or call 0121 333 8506.
