Stewart’s wish granted

By Shannon Colee

Nov 26, 2023

Cheque it out: Stewart's Wish has had a big first year with thousands of dollars donated to palliative care unit. Jenny Murtagh, Sarah Vickers, Katherine Formica, Jan Carey and Jazmyn Vickers were excited to celebrate. Photo: Dakota Moses Photo by Dakota Moses

Sarah Vickers says after her dad died it was his wish to give back to the palliative care team that helped him so much in his final period.

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“His final wishes were that we would support his angels (the palliative team) and try to get funding to raise awareness and find a cure,” she said.

They began the charity Stewart’s Wish, named after Ms Vickers’s father, in 2022 and this year have been able to donate $8500 to Echuca Regional Health and $3000 to Pancare Foundation.

“Throughout the last 12 months we’ve been fundraising through a high tea, a drag bingo event, raffles and the monthly Moama Market and raised $12,000 altogether for the year,” Ms Vickers said.

“You’d never believe it, but the Moama Market was the biggest success. The amount of people that stop to chat with us and ask questions. It also helps with just that awareness, getting it out there so people understand.

“We were aiming for $5000 for the year. So what we got just blew us away. The support from the community and everyone involved has just been fantastic.”

Ms Vickers said without the palliative care nurses she was not sure her family would have survived the ordeal.

She said that every step of the way they were there, supporting and helping the entire family.

“Anything he needed he got, they turned up, they did his blood pressure, they checked everything out and then sat down with him, explained what all his different symptoms were and what was going on,” she said.

“It wasn’t just dad that was supported. It was mum, myself, my daughter. We were all getting support from them. It was huge.”

Ms Vickers said businesses throughout Echuca-Moama had been instrumental in getting the charity to where it was today.

“We got sponsorship and help from places like Fuzion Cafe, Echuca Mitsubishi, Bryant’s BUDS, GMCU, Bakehouse 151, Echuca Betta Electrical and Cosgriff Lawyers,” she said.

ERH nurse Katherine Formica said they were extremely grateful for such a generous donation and were proud of all the hard work Stewart’s Wish had put into the year.

“It’s a beautiful testament to their family as well as a beautiful donation to the community palliative care team,” she said.

“We’ll be able to use that to do what we do best, look after people at home and keep them as well as possible at home with their families.”

By Shannon Colee