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Here's what Variety
Grant recipients have to say...
October 2007: 'The grants that you give make so much difference to children and
families of these special kids...it is hard to describe the frustration that we
as parents feel when we know that some equipment or experience will benefit our
children but are unable to finance it ourselves...Getting this grant opens up
opportunities for our kids. Thank you so much." Tina Siraa,
Morrinsville
September 2007:
'Dear Variety, how does one write to say thank you for your
charity towards a better future for my son? Whatever the words they don't begin
to express our gratitude...' Grant to purchase insulin pump for their son. Hartles
Family, Maungaturoto
September
2007: 'Thanks so much again for the grant and the amazing opportunity to meet
the Variety team and Bashers... It is impossible to know how much we have spent
on therapy for Tiaan as we throw our receipts away because we don;t want to know
all that matters is that we do everything possible to help our kids, to minimise
barriers to them reaching their potential, providing education that works for
them and of course, lots of hugs and kisses.
On the way home, Tiaan clutched his cheque in one hand and read me
the whole paper-back book of Captain Underpants 4 with much enthusiasm, stopping
occasionally to snack on the Pop N Good popcorn handed out by the Bashers. It
was wonderful to drive home listening to him read, laugh and chatter. Since his
diagnosis of autism he and I have travelled many k's to private therapy as his
autism is too mild for any funding. We saw Speech Language Therapists, a
Kinesiologist and Occupational Therapists for his coordination, an Educational
Psychologist and an Audiologist who discovered that, along with other
difficulties he had with learning, he was not able to filter out sounds in the
classroom and therefore not able to hear his teacher. The device was a available
but at a cost of $4053, which we just didn't have in our back pockets. We were
resigned to saving for it. We knew one day we would get it and although it might
take us a while to save for it, it would be worth it.
We have been very
fortunate in that Tiaan has improved by going to the different therapies. I know
many families whose children make little or no progress but they never give up.
Tiaan is a lovely boy and a real inspiration to me. I have watched him struggle
with all aspects of life and marveled at how much he has achieved.
Just when things look tough,
something like Variety comes into our lives. Forever Grateful.' Manawa
Fabrello
July 2007: '... our crew's getting all
ready ... I'm all set for the big trip (thanks to all of you at Variety).
Training's been good - can't wait to go up against the world! I just really
wanted to say THANK YOU! TO YOU AND ALL THE STAFF THERE AT VARIETY. I can't
explain how grateful I am. Have a great day. Aroha tino nui!!!' Hamiora de
Theirry, 2007 Gold Heart Scholarship
Recipient
.
Hamiora leaves New Zealand on Friday 20th July to compete in the World Hip Hop
Championships in Los Angeles.
June 2007:
'To all the
wonderful people at Variety. This is my first ride on my bike
. Everyone I met I told them
"it's a cool bike and it's wonderful." Every morning when Mum is looking for me
to go to school I am sitting on my bike with my helmet on in the garage. Love
Grace.'
'Thank you for the joy you have given Matthew and
Grace. Even in this cold snap Grace was out hands frozen to the handle bars,
saying 'isn't it cold', but no way was she coming home until she finished her
ride. God bless you all, Mum.' Belette family.
 June 2007: 'On behalf of
the children of Southland, I would like to express our appreciation for the
approval of $300 to purchase keys for the Invercargill Variety Liberty Swing
.
Comments (about the swing) from children and their families has been positive
and include the following:
'I cried when I saw the expression of wonder on my
son's face when he experienced his first swing. He is now 12 years of age and
has not been able to enjoy having a swing for the past 6 years.'
'Thank you, thank you and thank you.'
'I just love the swing. When are we going to get a
slide?'
'I was given my own key and that's pretty
special'
'I like the Liberty Swing as other kids come over
to see what I am doing and they talk to me.'
'I went and had a swing and there was a lot of
water gathered at the back of it which my Mum did not see. When the swing moved
I got really wet and so did she! It was really cool.'
'I know I am in my thirties but I am really a kid
at heart and enjoy having a go on the Liberty Swing.'
'From all
of us in the Deep South, thank you for giving us this fantastic opportunity. It
was a tremendous project to be involved in and also reminded those of us at CCS
Southland what a supportive community we live in.' CCS Southland,
Invercargill.
 April 2007: 'What
a wonderful gift from you to fund this amazing
bike for Shaun. He
was left out of many activities with other kids due to his disability
affecting his sense of balance and understanding things around him. We are not
up to riding to school yet (as this is one of our goals at least once a week),
but we are going on short rides to the park and pools which are very close and
riding around the section with the other kids. This has brought out another
social side to his life. I will keep you informed of his achievements on his
bike as they would not have been possible without your amazing charity. Thank
you so much.' Leigh and Shaun.
 April 2007: ' ... we would like to
personally thank you for funding my hand
cycle
. It's such a great opportunity for me to get out and
enjoy myself like everyone else. It gives me freedom to move about, instead of
being in my wheelchair for long periods of time. I have been in a wheelchair now
for 6 1/2 years, since I contracted a virus in my spinal cord. The condition is
called Transverse Myelitis which I was unfortunate to get at the age of 9 1/2.
Which resulted in paraplegia from my waist down. I have learnt to adapt and face
new challenges. Receiving the hand cycle means a lot to me, I am hoping to
compete in a sporting event in the future. A special thanks as this cycle is
perfect for my disability.' Carrie, Kaikoura.
March 2007, from the children of Room 1, Matata Public School
who received a Variety Sunshine
Coach:
'...I would like to thank you for giving us a Coach.
It has been much appreciated by our school and it has been blessed so all of the
passengers will have a safe ride...' '... the best part in the van are the seat
warmers and how they blow up and of course the CD player so we can listen to
music on the way to trips...' '...thank you for taking the time to donate this
lovely coach to Matata Public School. You are a very generous charity!!! I think
the work you do is awesome! Tu Meke!'
March 2007 : '... thank you for your contribution
(grant)...As mentioned in our
application, the youth of the Far North are extremely talented in many fields,
of which music is no exception. We know that your support will see more youth
within our area shine, excel and continue to grow in confidence. Thank you all
once again.' Abundant Life Centre, Kaitaia
 December
2006:
'We are writing to thank you sincerely for your
assistance in getting Daniel
his trike. We all enjoyed the presentation and
we now have an extremely delighted boy. He was able to get on the trike almost
immediately and was riding it tentatively within a few minutes. We are now
taking Daniel and his three sisters cycling at a local empty car park and we are
seeing progress all the time. It is wonderful to see him out being a boy and
being able to participate in something that he has only been able to watch up
until now. His sisters are also enjoying his company.' Barry and Sharon
Fox.
December 2006:
'It was with great
delight and tears that we received notice of approval of funding for a computer
for Erin. Thank you so much!! Erin's computer arrived yesterday and as
you can see, she is just as delighted as we are. What a wonderful birthday/Xmas
present. We are all very grateful to you all and wish you all a safe, happy and
peaceful Xmas.'
Lyn, Erin and family.
Tuatoko
had meningitis at 6 months of age and as a result now has hemiplegia and no
functional use of his left arm. He is able to walk but has difficulty using his
left leg. Variety granted funds to purchase a specialised trike
. Cycling helps to strengthen Tuatoko's leg muscles while
allowing him to play alongside his siblings and friends. His family say it's
been great for his self confidence and that Tuatoko is extremely proud of his
new bike.'
'...once again THANK YOU ALL SO
MUCH for this!! I truly can't find the words to tell you just how grateful we
are for your generosity. I have been on anti-depressants over the last year or
so, because of the stress of trying to (pretty unsuccessfully) manage (name
withheld)'s Diabetes on the regime she's been on and knowing we are not doing
well enough for her. The dream of getting her an insulin pump one day has honestly been the
only thing that's kept me going at times. So, you people have pretty much saved
this family's sanity. We will definitely let you know how things are going!!
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU', names withheld.
'Dear Variety, our whitewear appliances arrived this morning
and we all had ENORMOUS SMILES on our faces. THANK YOU SOOOO VERY VERY MUCH!!!
Thank you for making our lives a whole lot better, especially mine with these
beautiful gifts!! What joy the oven brought to my daughters as now we can
finally bake some homemade cookies, cakes and all kinds of goodies for everyone.
You can guess what we shall be up to these holidays!...I can't express enough
the thankfulness I have for your organisation and the kindness of the people who
donated these gifts for us... We give thanks to Variety for helping our family
have a little more peace in our lives...we wish you well in future successes
with other families in need, we will keep you and your families in our daily
prayers forever!' Mrs Lorna Sagisagi and Family
'Hi
everybody, I would like to thank everyone for what you do for our kids. I enjoy
receiving your newsletter and hearing about the fantastic things you are doing.
In Feb 2005 you came to Stratford, Taranaki, and gave me a rather large cheque
to purchase my son a carseat for older children . Fraser is now
5. He has Down Syndrome. The large carseat is because he still needs to be
fully restrained in the car and had outgrown the seats you buy from shops. I am
really grateful for that. I was so disappointed when we were unable to come to
your extravaganza held in New Plymouth in July. Fraser had a fall on the last
day of the term, at school, and broke his femur. He spent the first week of the
holidays in base hospital in traction. He was released from hospital that
Saturday in a hip spica cast, so wasn't up to a big party. We have enjoyed
previous ones. He is still in his cast but now we are counting down the days
until it comes off. The large carseat accommodates his cast which makes
transporting him safe. I am a single mum and appreciate all the effort and time
you put into helping our kids. I look forward to your next visit to the naki.
THANK YOU.' Lorraine and Fraser Watson.
'Just a
note to say a big thank you for your grant which enabled us to buy a
baby-cam monitor and
screen for our baby who
has a tracheotomy and cannot make any sound. It will be a great help and will
ease the strain of caring for her.' Prouting Family.
Mobile Ear Clinic #14,
Tairawhiti District Health Board
'We have
already seen with the
Mobile Ear Clinic that we are making a tangible difference to children's
lives in Tairawhiti. Accessibility is a problem, especially for children up the
Coast, so taking the service to them ensures that they have equal access to
diagnostic and treatment facilities to protect their hearing. Children's ears,
just like their eyes, are a window to the world so we are ecstatic we have been
able to get the Ear Clinic up and running.' Tara Berris, Community Ear Nurse,
Tairawhiti District Health Board.
'Our
kindergarten sincerely thanks you for your grant. This has made a huge
difference to our book
corner
. We were able to
purchase a new bookshelf and storage cupboards. More importantly, after many
years with no new books, we were able to purchase a number of new ones! It has
inspired some of our parents to get in behind our plight and they have also
donated some books.' Keith St Kindergarten.
'I am writing to say how much I enjoyed attending the presentation,
albeit briefly, of the Variety Liberty
Swing at the Hart
Domain on Friday 8 September. This was a
wonderful followup to the work that your organisation carried out at Henderson
High School's special unit the Parekura
Centre
. The commitment of your celebrities and so many people from
the local community to ensuring that those children and families who are less
advantaged receive the support they need is second to none. It is always a
pleasure in these times to attend events where good work and good communities
are recognised and celebrated. Thank you again and I look forward to attending
future events.' Lynne Pillay, MP for Waitakere.
'A huge
thank you so much to everyone involved at Variety...in the funding of Daniel's
new trike
. We have only had the trike
for one week but it has already made such a difference to our lives! We are so
touched by your kindness. Daniel will use the trike every day to go to school
and home, with his brother and sister and it is so good for him - seeing his
legs moving, getting him going and being up high. He looks like he may even
master the art of pushing the pedals himself sometime soon!' Parents of Daniel,
Lower Hutt. Daniel has Cerebral Palsy.
 'As part of
any playground upgrade or new development the Christchurch City council aims to
provide play equipment for all abilities. The Variety Liberty Swing, through its design
to accommodate wheelchairs, has helped provide one of the most sought after and
enjoyable movements within the playground environment. Through help from Variety
the Christchurch City Council has been abe to include two Variety Liberty Swings
within its Parks. After seeing the joy on children's faces I would certainly
recommend the Variety Liberty Swing to be included into future playground
designs.' Steven Gray, Project Leader, Greenspace Unit, Christchurch City
Council.
'... thank you so much for the
exceptionally generous gift providing Matai
School
with a
Variety Sunshine Coach
for our activities. It has already been put to use going
on outings we would not have been able to make otherwise. ' Victory Unit, Matai
School.
'... thank
you so much for providing Orewa College Student
Support Unit
with
a Variety Sunshine
Coach
. Regular visits
to places and events in the local community ar every important because, for
some of our children, it is the only opportunity they have to do so. It is
always exciting to see their reaction first hand. This ...Variety Sunshine
Coach ... will ensure existing and new programmes can be implemented fully,
particularly work exploration opportunities. It will also increase the
effectiveness of the department in developing each students potential and
independence.' Acting Principal, Orewa College.
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