Lunetta Aiolupotea (left) and Fiti Aiolupotea with their new born baby Perez.
Lunetta Aiolupotea (left) and Fiti Aiolupotea with their new born baby Perez.
Leading up to the holidays, Ronald McDonald House Charities New Zealand (RMHC NZ) is calling for help as the group prepares for record demand.
While most Kiwi families will be booking their holidays, preparing their festive menus, and planning their gifts, this year Christmas is going to look different for hundreds of families.
Each year, RMHC NZ welcomes thousands of families with children who are ill or injured, who need life-saving treatment or surgery.
The organisation becomes a home away from home, so that families can focus their child.
In 2023 alone, more than 500 families stayed at one of RMHC NZ’s facilities across New Zealand between December and January, and the organisation expects it will support just as many, if not more families this year.
Baby Perez celebrated his first birthday this year, a milestone his parents once feared he wouldn’t reach.
One Hastings family know exactly what its like to need RMHC NZ when it’sunexpected.
Lunetta and Fiti Aiolupotea, parents to three children, were expecting their fourth baby when Lunetta unexpectedly went into labour at 35 weeks.
She required an emergency C-section in Hastings, where baby Perez was born on October 28, 2023. Soon after his birth, Perez’s oxygen levels failed to stabilise, prompting a transfer to Wellington NICU and later to Auckland’s Starship children’s hospital with specialist support, including ECMO, to save his life.
Perez was diagnosed with hemitruncus, a rare congenital heart condition. Over seven weeks, he endured multiple surgeries, including open-heart surgery.
Throughout this experience, the Aiolupotea family stayed with RMHC NZ for 73 nights in total, across a number of stays – with Perez’s older siblings coming up for two of these trips.
Lunetta said, “If RMHC didn’t exist, to be honest, we would have had to sell our house.”
RMHC NZ made sure the older Aiolupotea children had some special Christmas magic to celebrate.
She added, “there’s just no way we could afford two months in a hotel in Auckland for me and Fiti. And we had to stay together – it was vital for us. We thought our baby was going to pass away, being apart just wasn’t an option.”
The family also stayed at RMHC’s Domain House for Christmas in 2023, and they were impressed by how special it was.
“We got to pick out presents for all the kids from Santa’s grotto – we were just blown away by the presents donated by wonderful companies and individuals,” Lunetta said.
She was left speechless from all the love, care and support the family received.
“Even though we had a sick child, we didn’t want to neglect our other children – especially at Christmas.
“RMHC allowed us to be near Perez but still make sure our other children were happy at the same time. It was priceless.”
Recently, Perez celebrated his first birthday, a milestone his parents once feared he wouldn’t reach. “He’s thriving now, doing everything a 1-year-old should,” Lunetta said.
Though the journey was traumatic, she’s grateful to RMHC NZ for supporting her family and helping them stay together.
Ronald McDonald House Charities New Zealand CEO Wayne Howett said the organisation is preparing for record demand.
RMHC NZ CEO Wayne Howett explained the team at RMHC NZ put in an enormous amount of effort to turn the houses into festive grottos with Santa, elves, good food, and wrap-around support for families.
“We don’t want families to miss out on the festive season while they are away from home so our team and volunteers go all out over Christmas to bring a little cheer.
“However, we are fully aware the families and kids staying with us would much rather be enjoying their summer break away from the hospital.
“It can be a really tough time to be away from home with a sick child, and we want to make sure the families have the support they need,” Howett said.
Over the past few years, demand for RMHC NZ’s services has significantly risen and in 2023, RMHC NZ had its most impactful year to date, helping a record 4452 families and providing 42,000 nights of accommodation.
Not a single eligible family was turned away - keeping a promise the charity has maintained since it first opened its doors 35 years ago.
This year there is no sign of demand slowing down, with organisation expecting to operate at maximum capacity across all of its Houses.
Howett has concerns that RMHC NZ may not be able to keep up with demand in the coming years.
The CEO said numbers from the past 12 months are a “staggering” reminder of how much work it takes to keep the wheels turning at RMHC NZ, but they may not be enough in the near future.
“If we were to start turning away families, it’s the children who would be impacted the most. In fact, they could miss out entirely on the treatment they so desperately need.
“Having a child who’s ill or injured impacts the whole family, and it can be even harder over the holiday season. Unlike most Kiwis who can take a break over the summer, sickness doesn’t take a holiday, and neither will we,” Howett said.
In 2023, Kiwi families saved $9,876,204 in accommodation, food, and parking costs due to the help provided by RMHC NZ.
“None of this would be possible without the support of Kiwis and businesses who donate to RMHC NZ. Every year, they make a tangible difference to families who don’t have the privilege of just getting away from it all.”
Howett added, “This summer we are asking Kiwis to consider adding the gift of a night at RMHC NZ to the Christmas shopping list, to help ensure we can provide support for every family in need.”
Readers can give their support to Kiwi families this Christmas, by donating on the RMHC NZ website.
