The Surrey Hospitals Foundation (SHF) is lighting up the critical care tower at Surrey Memorial Hospital to kick off its latest fundraising campaign called ‘Shine.’
Starting Nov. 22 and running until Jan. 6, the inaugural holiday light display will celebrate Diwali, Gurupurab, Hanukkah and Christmas. It will also celebrate the foundation’s 30th anniversary.
Jane Adams, CEO of the foundation, said it will be an “animated light show, and we will have messages of thanks in different languages and then it will incorporate seasonal images as well as donor names.”
The focus of the light display and fundraising campaign is to shine a light on the need for more youth and children’s health services in Surrey, Adams said.
With Surrey being the fastest-growing city in Western Canada, according to the 2021 census, it is important that the number of available health services matches the population growth, she added.
“We have the highest birth rate, we have more children than any other city but our children’s health services have not grown,” said Adams. “In fact, some of them have contracted over the last twodecades and we want to draw attention to this and we want to make sure that we’re working with the community to provide the environment that allows those services to come here, close to home.”
Rani Senghera, a Surrey mother, will be the one to turn on the lights on Nov. 22.
This campaign hits close to home for Senghera. Due to the lack of specialized doctors in Surrey, she had to drive to BC Women’s Hospital in Vancouver to get needed specialized care.
Senghera said investing in children and youth health services at Surrey Memorial Hospital will help remove anxiety and fear for parents. They will be reassured that their child is receiving the best care possible.
Adams agreed.
“We need to really increase the number of specialized physicians we have and services and clinics that we have running full time in Surrey,” Adams said. “So, you know, tens of thousands of Surrey families don’t have to travel into Vancouver for ongoing care.”
The foundation’s goal is to raise $400,000. All of the funds will go towards children and youth health services at Surrey Memorial Hospital. The first $200,000 will be matched dollar for dollar by the Vancouver-based real estate and developer, Peterson.
To learn more about the campaign, click here.
anna.burns@surreynowleader.com
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