Thinking of Oscar – One of Willow Cottage’s Chosen Charities 2017/18

Thinking of Oscar is an Oxfordshire based charity which was founded in memory of Oscar Cole, the older brother of one of Willow Cottage’s children, Barney Cole. Oscar was a healthy, speedy 16 month old who died very suddenly and unexpectedly aged 16 months.

Oscar’s parents, Hannah and David, founded the charity soon after his death, keen that something positive came out of such terrible events. The mission of Thinking of Oscar is to improve the experiences of children and their families whilst in hospital care. To date they have raised circa £200,000 and have funded a range of projects predominantly centred around Oxfordshire.

Examples of these projects include:
The donation of vein finder devices into the John Radcliffe Children’s Hospital and Great Ormond Street Hospital, London. Vein finders illuminate the veins below the skin, providing a useful back up for the professional judgement of the clinicians and making cannulating or taking blood from a child, who may have podgy hands and / or small veins, much less stressful for child and parent alike.
Last year they worked closely with a local boys school and, through funds raised via a variety of events that the boys held, an interactive floor projector is now being donated to the John Radcliffe Children’s Hospital. These projectors are invaluable for distracting children prior to procedures. There is also evidence to suggest that if a child is not stressed or anxious then this may lessen their perception of discomfort.

Partnering with a company which produces a product called Baby Pod’s. The latest version of this piece of equipment has been co-designed by the Advanced Engineering Team at Williams Formula One,

and it’s purpose is to enable the easier transportation of very poorly infants. There is also another version which facilitate easier scanning of very young infants. Thinking of Oscar will selectively fund new units into Children’s hospitals across England during the course of the next year.

You can find out more about Oscar’s story and the work that the charity is undertaking via their website www.thinkingofoscar.com. Over the past 3 years their main fundraising event has been the Blenheim Palace Triathlon, with 90% of the team doing a triathlon for the very first time. They will once again be putting a team together for 2018, so if you are interested in joining then visit their website or contact them directly via charity@thinkingofoscar.com