Jacquie and Joe Laquerre credit the work of physicians and staff at BC Children's Hospital with saving their daughter's life three years ago and have been working ever since to find ways to give back to the institution.
Now they're encouraging others people who have been touched by the hospital to consider helping out with the local Prince George Community for Kids charity.
Just five days after twins Allison and Mya Laquerre were born in Prince George, Allison stopped feeding and her skin began to lose colour. Doctors in Prince George quickly identified the issue as a heart problem and she was rushed to Vancouver.
"Within two hours she was air-vaced down to Children's with my husband," Jacquie said. "When they got down to Children's the cardiac team was waiting for her."
Jacquie stayed behind in Prince George to care for Mya, while Joe looked after Allison as she received life-saving treatment.
Doctors soon determined that Allison was born with a coarcatation of the aorta, a congenital heart defect that's difficult to detect and often presents a few days after birth as babies transition from life in the womb to life in the world.
When Allison was nine days old Dr. Sanjiv Gandhi at B.C. Children's completed successful surgery to repair her heart and just two weeks later she was back home with her twin sister in Prince George.
"We just about lost her twice," Jacquie recalled. "The first time here and the second time there because her heart didn't know how to function properly."
Three years on, Allison is doing well, but requires monitoring from the cardiac team from Children's when they make routine visits to Prince George to check in on pediatric heart patients in the region. The specialists will keep an eye on her heart as she grows up - big growth spurts are of particular interest - and could perform other procedures if they're required.
The Laquerre's first-hand experience at the hospital inspired them to find ways to give back. Rather than accept gifts each year for Allison and Mya's birthday, they take donations and have raised almost $2,000 for the hospital so far.
Jacquie has also joined the board of Prince George Community for Kids, a local group that has been raising money for the hospital for the past 12 years.
"It was very important for my husband and I to give back to Children's for saving her life," she said.
Through events like an annual golf tournament, Prince George Community for Kids has raised over $100,000 in the past decade, but the amount of money they've been able to collect has declined in recent years.
Chairman Rick Mintz said the group is looking to expand the number of fundraisers it holds each year and is hoping to get more people on the board to help make them a success. He said the board has shrunk from more than a dozen people a few years ago to only a handful now.
Mintz is hoping to attract new members, especially people who are free during the day who can help find sponsorships for major events.
In addition to this summer's golf tournament, the group has already held a curling fundrasier and is also planning a baseball tournament, a Grey Cup party and a gift card silent auction around Christmas.
Mintz said in the past the golf tournament alone has raised $22,000, but recently it has dropped to between $8,000 and $10,000.
"That's partly due to lack of bodies," he said. "Five or six people don't know enough people to get the sponsorships."
All of the money the group raises goes to the BC Children's Hospital Foundation - "we keep five dollars in the bank each year just to keep the account open," Mintz said - and the funds go to help the services that help children around the province.
In Prince George alone, there were 663 children who received care at the hospital last year.
Prince George Community for Kids is one of six active organizations of its type in the province, along with groups in Vanderhoof, Port Alberni, Sooke, Victoria and the Upper Fraser Valley. Collectively they've all raised more than $500,000 to help the Children's hospital acquire equipment and pay for services.
Jacquie has joined the board and she hopes other parents of children who have used the hospital will consider pitching in, whether it's by joining the committee or by helping out on the days leading up to the fundraising events.
"Maybe there are families out there who have had services through Children's and are looking for ways to give back, but don't know what avenue to explore," she said. "This would be the perfect opportunity."
Anyone interested in joining the board or helping out at events can contact Mintz at [email protected].
