Devoted Sister’s ‘Heartiversary’ Challenge

A grateful sister raised almost £2,000 for us, after walking over 160km in 28 days, to mark the anniversary of the day our hospital saved her baby brother’s life.

In early 202, 20-year-old Katie Bowen’s little brother, Ray, celebrated his second birthday but that same week, the family had also celebrated his ‘heartiversary’ – the day surgeons at our hospital fixed his heart.

After a long and difficult IVF journey, Katie’s mum, Jenna Leawood, gave birth to baby Ray, with Katie by her side as her birth partner. Jenna, Katie and their family were instantly smitten with Ray, who as Jenna’s scans suggested, was born with Down Syndrome.

Life was perfect with Ray completing the family but just a few months later, Jenna noticed he had stopped gaining weight, and she took him to their local hospital. After a series of tests and scans, doctors broke the astonishing news that Ray had a been born with a condition called Ventricle Septal Defect, a birth defect common in babies with Down Syndrome, meaning he had a hole in his heart.

Ray was referred to our hospital and further tests confirmed his diagnosis. Our specialist cardiac team prepared Jenna and Katie for the operation Ray would need to close the hole in his heart and that day eventually came in January 2024, five days before his first birthday.

Ray was in theatre for over four hours while surgeons repaired his tiny heart and Jenna and Katie were beside themselves with worry but to their relief, the operation ran without a hitch. Seeing little Ray in recovery in the hospital’s Paediatric Intensive Care Unit with tubes and wires all over him was overwhelming but the nurses soon helped them feel at ease, explaining how each machine was helping Ray.

Ray spent five nights with us before he was well enough to return home but his mum and sister barely left his side. Jenna stayed in charitably funded parents’ accommodation in the hospital to be nearby and as well as caring for Ray, staff looked out for her, making sure she’d taken the time to eat and rest.

Since his operation, Ray has been able to thrive and has grown into a happy, healthy, loving little toddler. On his second birthday, Katie recalled the time she and her mum spent in hospital with Ray and just how incredibly they had all been treated during such a scary time. After being inspired by an advert for a fundraising challenge online, Katie decided it was time to do something to give back and set herself a 100km walking target to complete in a month.

Katie was blown away by the support she received from her friends, colleagues and family, who all dug deep to sponsor her challenge. Three friends even joined her for a walk one day and together they managed to tick 25km off in one go. Before long, Katie had reached 100km but she kept going, thinking of Ray.

Katie said: “Birmingham Children’s Hospital saved Ray’s life and I’ll never be able to say thank you enough for that. The extra support we received as a family was mostly down to Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity and I hope by fundraising I can pay that forward so that the next patient in Ray’s bed space and the next family can receive the same phenomenal care.

“100km seemed like a daunting challenge but once I got going I couldn’t believe how much my memories of being in hospital spurred me on. I’m pleased to say this won’t be my last challenge, I’m hoping to get my whole family involved with the next one!”

Annie Eytle, Head of Public Fundraising at Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “Katie’s love for her little brother teamed with her passion for our hospital and sheer determination to help others has blown us away.

“She absolutely smashed her challenge and the incredible funds she raised as a result will go on to help us continue doing more for the 100,000 sick kids our hospital treats every single year, and supporting their families too.”