Tracey Meads wants to brighten up Starship Hospital walls and the days of sick children. Photo / File
Tracey Meads' idea - Love Letters - which sees children in Starship Hospital sent A4-sized letters to spell their names on their wall - has been so popular she is looking to expand the idea to other hospitals.
Her simple yet effective idea to brighten up the rooms of sick
children and their families has seen the Ngakuru woman nominated for a Pride of New Zealand award in the community spirit category.
"It is spreading out to hospitals in New Zealand," she said. "I send it to anyone that's affected, even parents whose child was in hospital a couple of years ago and sometimes we sent [the large letters] to them for their bedroom wall, and parents that have lost their child. I just started it and we will just find out how far it will go."
Mrs Meads' nominator said she had an amazing story of courage herself, after her son, Frank, was in Starship Hospital after being diagnosed with leukaemia.
"Love Letters is her way of paying it forward to those that are travelling the road or similar roads that she and her family did. A lot of people who make the letters do it to pay it forward also because they too have experienced Starship, have family that have or just out of compassion."
