Starlight Children's Foundation

GIVING SICK CHILDREN A REASON TO SMILE Starlight brightens the lives of seriously ill children, and their families, throughout Australia.

Living with illness or injury can cause enormous strain in the lives of children and their families. The pain, loneliness and isolation that sick children feel dominates their lives, and they often miss out on normal experiences that healthy children take for granted.

Physical recovery is only part of the solution. Starlight delivers programs designed to make children happy and lift their spirits when they need it most. Starlight brings fun and laughter to children no matter what their illness or where they live.

"Looking after a child with a chronic or life threatening illness requires a comprehensive 'total' approach to care, a healing environment that includes entertainment, diversion, fun, laughter and joy. Starlight is a key partner in providing these aspects of care." – Professor Les White Executive Director, The Sydney Children’s Hospital

Since 1988, Starlight has been providing services Australia wide to help seriously ill and hospitalised children, and their families. Starlight programs are delivered both in and out of hospital, providing positive distraction to children in their time of need.

“The day we heard Starlight were able to grant Christian’s Wish was amazing – the best day since his illness was diagnosed. It has become something special for him to look forward to every day.” – Nikki, Starlight Parent

“Thank you Captain Starlight… You made me feel warm and fuzzy inside, and sometimes even made some of my pain go away... I look forward to my next stay in hospital as I know you are all there to keep me smiling. Without Starlight, the great team of my nurses...and my mum, I would be scared to face hospital...” – Starlight Child

“Starlight creates smiles, brings happiness, ends loneliness and fear, and holds families like ours together.” – Lillian, Starlight Parent

“As a parent with two chronically ill children, you can imagine the strain we face in caring for our children and supporting them financially. We are constantly in and out of hospital with one or both of children needing treatment. Having to deal with both children being sick is stressful, but with help from Starlight we can cope with our situation, taking each day as it comes.” – Pam, Starlight Parent

"Starlight makes me happy, and smile even when I don't feel like it." – Starlight Child

“There were days when Christian would say, ‘Mummy, I can’t do it anymore. I want to go home.’ But then he’d do his best to be brave. I’d tell Christian, ‘Just do this with the doctor, and then we can go to the Starlight Express Room.’ It was our safe place away from the doctors – Christian would forget he was sick in the Starlight Express Room.” – Natasha, Starlight Parent

Captain Starlight
Captain Starlight’s sole purpose is to bring smiles to sick children by distracting them from their illness and pain using entertainment and engagement. In the eyes of a child, Captain Starlight is a magical super hero, bringing laughter, games, magic and all kinds of fun activities into their lives. The team of Starlight Captains work their magic across numerous Starlight Programs.

Starlight Express Rooms
The Starlight Express Room is a place where Captain Starlight delivers a special style of fun and entertainment, alongside the latest computer games, movies, crafts and activities. Kids too ill to leave their beds can join the fun through the Captain’s Ward Program as well as via the daily Captain Starlight shows broadcast to their bedside TVs. Starlight Express Rooms are in Australia’s major paediatric hospitals providing a medical free respite for children and their families.

Starlight Fun Centres
Starlight Fun Centres give children the freedom to play what they want, when they want from their bedsides. These mobile entertainment units have computer games, music and DVDs that lift the children’s spirits, ending the frustration and boredom of being confined to bed. Starlight has Fun Centres in paediatric wards around Australia.

Starlight Escapes
Starlight Escapes offer families a break from the stress of a child’s illness. By providing bright, unexpected entertainment such as a night at the movies or a picnic in the park, the Starlight Escapes program allows families to enjoy quality time together while also giving them a much needed rest from treatments and hospitals.

Starlight Wishgranting
A Starlight Wish is like a dream come true for a seriously ill child. Sharing a special, once-in-a-lifetime wish brings a family together, and is an experience that stays with them forever. Starlight aims to grant more wishes each year for children with serious and chronic illness.

"When I look back on Andrew’s Starlight Wish I realise we actually received two gifts – first when we were on the island and Andrew was having the time of his life, and now the lasting memories. I remember watching his face light up with excitement and joy. It made me cry, because we could never have given this to him ourselves." – Starlight parent

Livewire
Livewire is a safe and fun online community for young people (aged over 10 and under 21 years) living with a serious illness, chronic condition or disability. Livewire is a supportive place for young people to “hang out”, make friends, share experiences, express themselves creatively and realise they are not alone in their situation.

The aim of Livewire is to empower these young people by providing online access to inspirational and entertaining content, interactive games and a full suite of community tools to improve their emotional and social wellbeing, whether they are in hospital or at home.

Club Ado
The only facility of its kind in Australia, Cub Ado (short for Club Adolescents) is a dedicated space for adolescent patients and their siblings and friends, where they can hang out and escape the boredom, loneliness and stress of hospital life. This vibrant space is made up of four interactive rooms, as well as an outdoor area, with professional room facilitators trained in various backgrounds. To reflect the interests of adolescents, this program allows patients to support one another, meet new friends and discover hidden talents, all the while filling the room with smiles and laugher. Launched in Perth's Princess Margaret Hospital, Club Ado gives hospitalised teenagers a dedicated space of their own, including exclusive access to a games room, cafe, arts area, media studio and lounge.

Club Ado Ward Program
This program aims to reach all adolescent patients at Princess Margaret Hospital and is delivered by professionally trained staff with specialised backgrounds in areas such as music, arts and media. Adolescent patients who are too ill to leave their bedsides can enjoy activities such as art, creative writing and film making to lift their spirits and alleviate the stress and boredom of hospital life.