She had three heart surgeries within the first six months of her life, suffering a stroke and heart failure forcing her to spend her first Christmas in hospital.
At 30 now, she lives with a permanent pacemaker and is an accomplished entrepreneur, the proud founder and director of Business with a Heart, whose mission is to bring joy and happiness to sick children and their families.
According to HeartKids, an estimated 2,400 babies are born with a form of congenital heart disease each yea’’r nationally and many more develop heart conditions during childhood.
To reach out and raise awareness about it, Business with a Heart engages with the wider community of people (immediate and extended families) and educates them about living life with kids diagnosed with life threatening medical conditions.
As a goodwill gesture, they make bears to hand out to sick children in hospitals, thus giving them some hope and joy in the process.
Why a bear, one might wonder? Well, it has a deep personal connection with founder Tania.
“I was given a teddy bear at six months old, whilst in hospital. I am now 30 years old, and still have that teddy bear that has been coming with me to every operation. The bear for me, is a symbol of hope, protection, and love. It is the only thing that is able to come with me into a theatre room- and the first thing I see at the end of my bed when I wake up.
“As you can imagine, loved ones are unable to come into the ICU recovery- therefore when you wake up it's scary to hear a different nurse or doctor- so having something that is consistent is comforting,” says Tania.
Making a bear
It was a thoughtful conversation during lockdown with her mother about doing something for the isolated children in hospitals that Tania came up with the concept of ‘making’ a bear and giving it away for them to keep.
This pretty much led to children in the hospitals making their own bears. Tania also started assisting the elderly with rehabilitation and physio in nursing homes and they too joined in the initiative.
As on date, over 2,000 children across Australia have been gifted a teddy bear. Some beneficiary hospitals include Gosford Hospital, Westmead children's Hospital, Perth Children's Hospital, Royal North Shore Hospital and Randwick Children's Hospital.
The next chapter
This not-for-profit organisation regularly conducts fundraising events that bring together industry leaders from across the state.
Outside of the hospitals, hey have community group events that encourages those living with the health condition and their carers to come together and share stories of resilience. This provides valuable support to the vulnerable community too.
They also organise team building days for companies, wherein everyone engages in meaningful activities. Their annual event is scheduled to be held on April 4, 2025 at Le Montage, Lilyfield.
Visit: www.businesswithaheart.com
