LoveOliver

On Christmas Day 2010 little Oliver Gill, aged just 24 weeks, died from a malignant Rhabdoid Tumour.  In 2011, Andy and Jennifer Gill started LoveOliver and Jennifer gave a talk at Kilrymont Rotary on the work they have done since then to help the 150 or so children who are diagnosed with cancer each year.  Help extends to the families from all over Scotland.   Working with social workers they provide grants of £250, provide supermarket vouchers and quality digital thermometers.  For families going through long inpatient stays they have a freezer in the oncology ward at Edinburgh Children’s hospital where parents can access free food. There is now a LoveOliver café at the Howat Hub located across the road from the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Edinburgh.  This provides a safe space for families to have time to meet others and to access food which can often be problematic.  As well as supporting new cases they will continue supporting children up to the age of 16. 

             As well as providing practical support for children and their families, LoveOliver is funding two PhD students at Newcastle University where work on childhood cancers is being researched. They are also funding a full time Technician post.

               Because they fund research, they are not eligible for Lottery funding and raising funds is particularly important. As well as the usual tried and tested methods, LoveOliver has now opened a shop in the Kingdom Centre of Glenrothes. Despite opening in 2021 during the pandemic, it has been greatly successful and is managed Jennifer herself.

                 Jennifer gave an inspiring and emotional talk highlighting the support she and the many volunteers involved provide in an area much neglected in the past.  However, she is always looking for new volunteers to help with a more common and widespread condition than might be supposed.

                 Mike Dow gave the vote of thanks