Newsletter - September 2010
It’s hard to believe how fast this year is going! Only three months until Christmas... As usual we have plenty of news to share; keeping you informed about what we have been up to in the last few months and bringing you up to date with what will be happening in the coming months! So take a break and enjoy this catch up! (Make sure you grab a drink/snack because there’s a lot of news and it’s a lengthy read!)
Quote of the Month
To find what you seek in the road of life, the best proverb of all is that which says: "Leave no stone unturned."
Edward Bulwer Lytton
2010/2011 Safekids Campaign Burns Partnership Project
Safekids New Zealand is a national child injury prevention service established in the 1990’s by Starship Children’s Health to help reduce the high rate of unintentional injury to children. Every July they launch a national child-safety campaign that focuses on the prevention of two specific unintentional childhood injuries. The last time they focussed on child burn prevention was in 2008. Their campaign had already started when Nathalie came on board as education officer but she collaborated with Safekids’ Anthony Rola on various magazine and newspaper articles about burn prevention that year. This was the start of Burn Support Group’s working relationship with Safekids which has continued to be fostered by both agencies even though Safekids haven’t focussed on burn prevention as one of their focus campaign issues since 2008.
Safekids Campaign Coordinator Sharlaine Chee approached Nathalie with the idea of creating a partnership group of injury prevention agencies to collaborate on Safekids 2010/11 campaign towards the end of 2009. Burn Support Group was very interested in being a part of any group of professional injury prevention agencies working in partnership and sharing their resources and ideas to help prevent childhood burn injuries. To cut a long story short, BSG has been an active member of a pilot group of agencies working together in a burns partnership project this year along with Safekids New Zealand, Safe Waitakere Injury Prevention, National Burns Centre and New Zealand Fire Service.
The objective of the group was to modify and redevelop a burns education kit originally developed by Safe Waitakere Injury Prevention. The group combined their expertise in burn prevention, sought for a consistency of messages and produced 10,000; ‘Loving Our Children: Safer Homes: Burns Prevention Toolkits.’ This is an A5 spiral bound flip chart which has general facts about child burns and safety messages around common causes of burns and has colour coded tabulated segments that align with the Well Child developmental and behavioural framework used by early childhood health professionals. It was distributed to 21 injury prevention coalitions and included in the resource kits presented in the Safekids Injury Prevention workshops nationwide. It is also downloadable as a printable PDF file on the Safekids website and will soon be available on ours.
Burn Support Group provided substantial funding towards this Burns Partnership Project. It was a very successful pilot partnership that will hopefully create a foundation for establishing and ensuring the consistency of burn prevention and burn first aid messages and the sharing of up to date information across lead burn prevention agencies nationwide.
Telemarketing Campaign
Southern Stars Charitable Trust has once again chosen Burn Support Group Charitable Trust, Inc. to be the beneficiary of one of their outbound telemarketing donation programmes. Their campaigns receive substantial donations from both members of the public and businesses. Their dedicated team of telephone operators make thousands of calls over a number of weeks inviting people to buy tickets for one of their professionally produced LIVE pantomimes. These tickets can be purchased for the person’s own family/children to attend the show or they can be bought and donated for distribution to special needs and disadvantaged children; so that they too can enjoy the experience of LIVE theatre.
In previous years the proceeds from the campaign have been presented to Burn Support Group on the day of the pantomime and we have been given the opportunity to briefly explain to the audience; who we are, what we do and how we will use the funds raised to continue assisting burn survivors and educating the public about burn prevention.
This year’s campaign commenced on the 27th July and will end on September 10th. The pantomime in aid of Burn Support Group this year is ‘Pinocchio’ and three LIVE shows will be performed on the 2nd October 2010. Don’t wait to see if you receive a call because tickets are also available for sale to the general public! So, if you would like to purchase a ticket for yourself or donate a ticket guaranteed to spread a smile onto the face of a special needs or disadvantaged child please call; Southern Stars Charitable Trust on (09) 361 4599.
BSG’s AGM
Our AGM was held on the 16th August 2010. The Board elections resulted in George Stephens being re-elected as our board’s president. (George is a Senior Fire Risk Management Officer for the New Zealand Fire Service in the Auckland region.) Jan Steele was also re elected to continue in her role as our vice president. (Jan has been on our board for many years and is a foundation staff member at the National Burn Centre).
Margaret Foster, Rosemary Barling, Mark Wiggins, Steve Lakin and Hayden Goldsack were all re-elected as board members and we welcomed a new addition, Melissa Patterson to our board. (Melissa is a childhood burn survivor who is very enthusiastic about helping other burn survivors and supporting them in any way she can).
Sadly, we farewelled Owen Williams and accepted his resignation from the position of treasurer on our board. Owen was a board member and trustee of BSG for the past 25+years. Burn Support Group has really appreciated and benefited from his many years of hard work for the Trust. Owen, you will be missed by board members and staff alike but we all wish you the best of luck in all your future endeavours!
Trustees Helen Polley, Vera Mills and Peter also resigned from their positions and we would like to acknowledge and thank them all for their time, dedication and many years of hard work for BSG over many years.
Trustees ‘Thank You’ Dinner
On the 22nd August, Burn Support Group had a ‘Thank You’ dinner for our retiring Trustees, Owen Williams, Vera Mills, Peter Mills and Helen Polley. Your amazing contributions to BSG will never be forgotten. We wish you all well!
(Owen Williams, Vera Mills, Peter Mills, Helen Polley unable to attend)
Coffee Group
The day arrived on 17th April for our get together held at Ultra Deli Café in Onehunga.
Carlos with his wife owns the café and had offered to have the coffee group there. We had 14 arrive for coffee with Rosemary and myself. Carlos had baked muffins and a lemon meringue just for us which were very yummy. The afternoon was enjoyed by all and a good turnout of burn survivors and family. Nicky who was over from Sydney visiting her father who was in out unit with burns came along too, she really enjoyed the afternoon and getting to know some of our survivors and how they are coping with their injuries.
We are looking forward to organising another outing later on in the year.
This maybe ten pin bowling or mini golf. We will keep you posted.
Maggie
President’s Corner
Hi readers. Hope that this latest edition of the Auckland Burn Support Newsletter sees you all fit, well, happy and looking forward to Christmas.
This Board like those in the past and in the future remain committed to our values inclusive of support and education both to our precious survivors, families and friends but also to the wider community in prevention and treatment.
To Carrie and Nathalie my personal appreciation for their efforts and commitment to the cause.
Stay safe, be good and don't get up to anything I wouldn't.
George
President.
Survivor’s Story
At the tender age of eleven, I found myself subjected to a small hospital bed that was lovingly adorned by needles and drips. These were all inserted, well, somewhere or another. The experiences I faced on my first night in hospital, after I gained my title of ‘burns survivor’, was much like that first visit to the dentist, or the pain felt when the ill-timed truth about Santa Claus leaks through the mouth of a parent.
Growing up, strangers have forced me to believe that what happened to me was nothing more than a plain tragedy. To me, however, it was nothing more than a rigid stepping stone in my life, isolated from the nearby golden staircase I wished so badly to climb.
Now, before I am blatantly mocked for my insensitive stance towards the accident that changed my life, give me a moment to explain the very details of my, as Lemony Snicket would like to call it, ‘unfortunate event’.
The day I scarred myself permanently, I was no different than any other pre-teen crowding the streets. I was still basing my life on junk food and cartoons. One hand on a clumsy steel-handle, connected to a home deep fryer, the other, glued to Sky remote control, flicking through the ‘hip’ channels, I managed to cause the deep fryer to slip off the counter. Four litres of boiling oil made a home of my face, neck, arm and both legs. I ran into my shower at the end of our narrow hallway, and tried to calm myself down. My meditative strategy seemed to work until my skin began blistering. At this point I must admit I didn’t manage to hold myself together. The rest of that time, and the ambulance ride were nothing more than a blur.
During my time in hospital I screamed, I refused the ‘cocktail of pills’ for dinner, I tried to pull tubes out of my mouth and I cursed. But really, looking back at my experience, I think my actions were nothing out of the ordinary for morphine controlled patient. Minus being told off by nurses for dangerous wheel chair races around the hospital, I think I did pretty well.
I am a seventeen year old girl and covered skin grafts and burns marks. I still seem to find strangers staring unintentionally at the scars that plainly fill my body. But really, what’s the point of getting offended? Instead of wasting my energy on those who believe they are doing nothing wrong by stealing the ‘occasional glance’ at my ‘meshed’ legs, I just ignore them and think of the day my scars will make a damn good conversation starter.
Warod Al-tiay
If you are a burn survivor or the parent/caregiver of a burn survivor and feel that others might benefit from and be encouraged by you sharing your experience, please contact us and tell us about it.
Camp 2011
Our next children’s camp will be in January 2011 at Chosen Valley Christian Camp. It will be held from Friday the 14th of January until Sunday the 16th of January. Invitations will be sent out to all the children in our database shortly; however you can also register your interest by emailing Nathalie at education@burns.org.nz. Camp attendance is FREE for children aged between 7 and 14; but we will be requesting that a $25 donation from parents be sent along with the required permission forms as a sign of their commitment.
‘Crash’ Johnson
Yes, you heard it right! A ‘BAD HAIR’ day...No make that ‘BAD HAIR’ weekend... has earned me a new nickname and our president has asked me to formally re introduce myself as ‘CRASH’ Johnson
It all started so well...
(Really! It was a happy weekend)
Until...
It ended with not only ONE, but TWO insurance claims to lodge for BSG!
So here’s the embarrassing little story behind my new name;
One Saturday night at the end of July, one of my children accidently walked into the power cord of my work laptop. It was knocked onto the tiled dining room floor and landed with a big...CRASH!
When I switched my precious work lifeline on I was mortified to discover that the screen was broken! My poor daughter got herself into a right panic thinking she’d have to withdraw her hard earned savings and pay for the damage but I assured her it would only be me that would suffer... (And dreaded having to make the call to our treasurer to find out details about our insurance).
With a family lunch to prepare for the next day I thought I would put off ringing our treasurer until Sunday afternoon (I know J what a wuss)...
BUT, as luck (or a serious lack thereof) would have it... by the afternoon I would have not ONE but TWO accidents to inform work about! YEP! After 23 years of driving; never having had as much as a ticket or fine; I managed to have a nice little ‘CRASH’!
Now, I swear to you...
I DIDN’T get out of the wrong side of the bed!
I HADN’T broken a mirror!
I DIDN’T walk under a ladder! And...
I NEVER even saw a black cat!
Nevertheless... My COOL little Skoda doesn’t look quite so COOL at the moment! LLL
AND...I have earned the nickname ‘CRASH’.
It was just a ‘BAD HAIR’ weekend that luck, karma or whatever you want to label it was NOT on my side
I can’t even really blame it on my BLONDE hair and tell you I was having a BLONDE MOMENT when it all happened
(But I’m still considering dying my hair just in case...)
The moral of the story is...
‘When luck is not on your side, sometimes the best way to handle what happened is to look at the funny side of things and laugh it off’.
Anyway, CRASH is not too bad a nickname and it could have been worse!
Kind regards to you all and good luck!
Crash Johnson
World Burn Congress October 20-23, 2010 Galveston, Texas
This year Burn Support Group is sending one of our board members to the World Burn Congress in Galveston, Texas.
“The World Burn Congress is an international conference that brings together over 650 burn survivors, their families, burn care professionals and fire fighters. The three days of the World Burn Congress are filled with inspirational stories of survival, courage and personal growth. Many have described their experience at WBC as both powerful and life changing.”
To be able to send a representative is invaluable to Burn Support and the Community and I’m sure you’ll see lots of information come forth in our next newsletter.
Thank you Air New Zealand
A big ‘Thank You’ to Air New Zealand; who have generously agreed to assist Burn Support Group with flights to the World Burn Congress in October. Your generosity is amazing and we really appreciate your support.
Mr Quick Cool’s Seasonal Safety Hints:
From now on, we will be including a list of safety and burn prevention tips in every newsletter that are appropriate for the months following its edition:
In the coming months, remember:
- Daylight savings starts on the 26th September, so make sure you change your smoke alarm batteries and give them a clean or vacuum if they are dusty
- Spring is about to arrive! Before you put away that electric blanket it would be a good idea to have it tested, especially if you’ve had it for a few years
- It may get warm enough to pull out the barbeque again so please remind young children to stay away from the area when a person is cooking, remember to put your matches or lighters out of children’s reach and have a bucket of cold water nearby or the hose ready to go for 1st Aid treatment in case an accident does happen
- At the end of October members from the Indian community will be celebrating Diwali. It is the time of year where families light small oil lamps (diyas) and candles and place them around their home and set of fireworks
- Please, DO NOT place diyas or candles in rooms if there is nobody in the room to keep an eye on them
- DO NOT remove smoke alarm batteries if the alarms are set off by the scent of the oils but place the diyas a little further away from the alarms
- DO make sure you use proper and safe candle holders and place them where children cannot reach them and they cannot be knocked over easily
- DO be careful and aware around fireworks...Keep children at a safe distance, get adults to light them and have a cold bucket of water handy nearby in case of accidents
ENJOY THE CELEBRATIONS!!!
- Guy Fawkes celebrations will be held in November...
- Please be careful and keep children at a safe distance
- ONLY let adults light the fireworks
- Keep matches and lighters away from children
- Have a bucket of cold water nearby or the hose prepared to be turned on in case of accidents
- Parents, think carefully about letting your children hold sparklers, especially if they are nervous and likely to panic! The temperature of a sparkler can get 10 times hotter than boiling water so they are not as safe as you think!
PLEASE ENJOY THE CELEBRATIONS SAFELY!!!
Must Reads !!!!
The Time of My Death – Alan Jeffry Breslau
The Burn Journals – Brent Runyon
"The Burn Journals" is a deeply personal story with universal reach. It is impossible to look away. Impossible to remain unmoved.
Website Re-design
We’re in the midst of a re-designing our website, so watch this space... If you can think of anything you would like to see more of on the website or some interesting ideas, please let us know! We love hearing from you.
Find us on Facebook
We have started a Facebook page!!! This page is intended to give our members and others who have suffered burn injuries (or their family members) the opportunity to connect with each other; share their experiences; get in contact with others that live nearby; and is another venue for everyone to keep up to date with what is happening with Burn Support Group.
You will find us listed as Burn Support Group Charitable Trust, Inc. so please come and join us!
2010/2011 Entertainment Book Fund-raiser
We are selling the 2010/2011 books as a fund-raiser. These can save your family a great deal of money while enjoying a variety of dining experiences, leisure and sports activities and local attractions.
Entertainment™ Books contain hundreds of 25-50% off and 2-for-1 offers from popular restaurants, cinemas, hotels, the arts, and sporting events and are only available through fund-raising groups and organisations such as Burns Support Group Charitable Trust, Inc.
If you would like more information, please visit our website www.burns.org.nz for a PDF flyer or contact Carrie on 09 276 0250.
Newsletter contributions
If you have any comments about the contents of this newsletter or ideas for future newsletters please don’t hesitate in contacting: nathalie@burns.org.nz or carrie@burns.org.nz.
Kind regards,
Carrie Trow, Crash Johnson & all the board members from Burn Support Group Charitable Trust Inc.
BURN SUPPORT GROUP CHARITABLE TRUST, INC
Phone: 09 276 0250 Email: info@burns.org.nz
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