Snowarama is a family-oriented fundraising event in which snowmobilers organize hill climbs, poker runs, rallies and scavenger hunts in support of Easter Seals Services. The B.C. Snowmobile Federation and its member clubs have partnered with Easter Seals as its charity of choice and Snowarama as their official charitable fundraising.
Thanks to events like Snowarama, the fundraising dollars will go towards supporting Easter Seals services in the province such as Easter Seals House, which provides a comfortable, safe and clean home away from home for families from across B.C. who have to travel to Vancouver to receive special medical care, such as Nathan.
Before Nathan even entered this world, doctors knew he was going to have some struggles—struggles that would keep his family travelling back and forth from Quesnel to Vancouver regularly. Six months into Lauren’s pregnancy, doctors noticed a problem in utero with her son’s kidneys and sent her to Vancouver. Nathan was born a month premature with a very rare disorder called prune belly syndrome.
Within a month of going home, further kidney failure brought Lauren and Nathan back to Vancouver to begin dialysis treatments that weren’t available in Quesnel. This time they stayed at Easter Seals House for a few months while Nathan received treatment and Lauren learned how to administer the dialysis herself.
When Nathan was two and a half, good news came. There was a kidney. Now, six years later, Nathan and his family continue to stay at Easter Seals House when they come for checkups every three to four months. The anti-rejection medication he has to stay on lowers his immune system, so Lauren particularly appreciates Easter Seals House’s focus on the cleanliness and sanitation of its 49 suites. Lauren says she tells anyone coming to Vancouver for medical reasons to stay at Easter Seals House because of its affordability, its proximity to hospitals and grocery stores within walking distance, and the amazing staff who have gotten to know them personally over the years.
Funds raised by Snowarama will also go towards Easter Seals Camps, where children and young adults are able to have the best week of their year and interact with other children that face many of the same challenges they do every day.
