Donors support palliative care families with an artwork to treasure

18 September 2024 | Expected time to read: 3 minutes

Isaac, patient, sydney children's hospital, palliative care

Sydney Children’s Hospitals Foundation’s (SCHF) Art Program is proud to reveal the 2024 A Little Piece of Me exhibition in collaboration with the Palliative Care teams across the Sydney Children’s Hospitals Network (SCHN) and artist Andrew Christie.  

48 SCHF-funded portraits were displayed across Sydney's two children's hospitals and Bear Cottage, with an additional nine proudly exhibitied at John Hunter Children's Hospital too. 

For the families featured in this year’s instalment of A Little Piece of Me, their child’s pixel portrait means so much more than just a photograph. Rather it’s the perfect snapshot of their life and beautifully captures the people, places and memories that have shaped them into the individuals they are. 

The beauty of the A Little Piece of Me exhibition is in the process as well as the final artwork  

sydney children's hospital, a little piece of me, andrew christie

SCHF’s Art Program alongside SCHN’s Palliative Care team, proudly work with each family to choose photos that reflect their child’s journey.  

Once collected, the photos are arranged by artist Andrew Christie to create a portrait of their child. The final artwork captures the wonderful lives of the children and adolescents, outside of their life-limiting illness, and offers the families a tangible memory they can keep. But most importantly, they tell their unique story.  

A Little Piece of Me is one of the beautiful ways SCHF supports the positive patient experiences of children and their families in hospital. It’s thanks to the generosity of SCHF donors that the project has run for seven years and has featured more than 351 families. 

Isaac, patient, sydney children's hospital, palliative care
Isaac, patient, sydney children's hospital, palliative care
For families like Isaac’s, the journey has been extraordinary. His mum Mona says, "I was flabbergasted and broke into tears the first time I saw Isaac's portrait. It's a beautiful reminder of all the people who love and support him every day, and the happiness he has brought into our lives.  

My son, Isaac, has received care from Sydney Children's Hospital, Randwick for the past 18 years. He was born very premature at 24 weeks gestation, weighing only 278 grams. The hospital has become our second home, and the palliative care team have helped give Isaac the quality of life we've always strived for.  

That's why we feel very lucky to be a part of this year's exhibition. At the opening exhibition, I remember just standing there, being so moved by every child's face on the wall. They are all so beautiful and you can see how loved each child is. I know that some of the patients have recently passed but we were one of the luckier ones to still have our son for a little longer."

The impact of SCHF’s Art Program extends beyond A Little Piece of Me and families like Isaac’s. Last financial year, our dedicated art in health service provided almost 600 workshops, engaging with more than 1000 patients and siblings, and hosted 27 exhibitions across both hospitals.
A little piece of me

Timothy Talty, Head of Patient and Donor Engagement at SCHF says, "A Little Piece of Me continues to provide space for families to celebrate the cherished lives of children and young people with life-limiting diagnoses. We are honoured to support so many incredible families who have generously opened their lives through photos and have shared their journeys with the Hospital community."

Mona, Isaac's mum adds, "SCHF's donors should feel incredibly proud of what their generosity can achieve.'' 

Donate today to support SCHF's Art Program. Your generous gift, no matter how big or small, can help A Little Piece of Me return in 2025. 

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