Sauce of hope – $1.1 million raised for children’s hospitals

Coles and its customers have raised over $1.1 million in just two weeks for children’s hospitals across Australia from its Curing Homesickness fundraising campaign.

The funds raised will help support sick children including hospital care in homes and vaccinations for Indigenous children in remote communities. For the first time, funds will also support young patients with cystic fibrosis at John Hunter Children’s Hospital in Newcastle.

More than $1 million was raised through donation cards and customer donations while nearly 50,000 jars of pizza and pasta sauces from the Mum’s Sause range were sold across Australia during the campaign, with 50 cents from each product sold going to the cause.

Curing Homesickness’ Nicola Stokes thanked Coles customers for digging deep to support sick kids in children’s hospitals.

“We’ve been overwhelmed by the wonderful response,” she said.

“To see so many local communities rallying to raise a record $1.1 million goes to show what we can achieve together nationwide for children’s health. We’d like to thank each and every Coles customer across Australia, as well as the Coles teams, for their generosity and ongoing commitment to getting sick kids home from hospital sooner.”

Coles Chief Sustainability, Property & Export Officer Thinus Keevé said breaking the $1 million milestone this year has been a result of working together with stores, children’s hospitals, and the community.

“The Curing Homesickness cause has really resonated with our team members and customers since it began only two years ago,” he said.

“Our customers love helping sick kids as much as we do and each year the campaign goes from strength to strength with new partners been added like John Hunter Children’s Hospital this year and with new products going on shelves to support the cause like the new Mum’s Sause Pizza Sauce.”

“We can’t thank our customers and team members enough for going over and above once again to support our partnerships with children’s hospitals across Australia to help get sick kids home from hospital sooner,” he said.

In NSW more than $507,000 was raised to help support Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network launch Australia’s first 24/7 virtual kids’ hospital and allow John Hunter Children’s Hospital in Newcastle to expand the Hospital in the Home service to include children with cystic fibrosis.

In Victoria, nearly $245,000 will go directly towards purchasing brand new, specialist physiotherapy equipment such as the Caribou standing frame for Monash Children’s Hospital, which will help children build their muscles and leave hospital sooner.

More than $145,000 was raised in Queensland to help fund child life therapy positions within the Children’s Emergency Department at The Prince Charles Hospital for the very first time.

WA shoppers raised over $113,000 to help fund world-class equipment and technology at Perth Children’s Hospital.

In South Australia and the NT, nearly $90,000 was raised to support family stays at the Laklinyeri Beach House in Victor Harbor and the Play Therapy program in the Women’s & Children’s Hospital, as well as a Meningococcal B vaccination and research program in remote communities of the Northern Territory.

The Royal Hobart Hospital Women’s and Children’s Services in Tasmania will receive over $16,000 to support clinical research at aimed at improving the medical care and experience of children living with chronic conditions.

Nearly $14,000 was raised in the ACT to help the Canberra Hospital Foundation purchase equipment and therapy toys for the expansion of its Hospital in the Home program for children.

Coles and its customers have now raised over $2.9 million since 2019 for Curing Homesickness, a national initiative which brings children’s hospital foundations and paediatric services from across Australia together to help get sick kids home from hospital sooner.

Shoppers can continue to support Curing Homesickness by buying a Mum’s Sause Pizza Sauce (new) or Mum’s Sause Pasta Sauce from Coles supermarkets across Australia, with 50 cents from each product sold supporting children’s hospitals.

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