During the tournament dinner at the 2009 Drive for CHEO, Jeanne Robertson, Operations Director for In Patient Paediatrics at CHEO, created considerable excitement when she announced another equipment purchase at the hospital, with $90,000 from the Ryan Williams Fund.

She reported that CHEO has added an anaesthesia airway video cart to their euipment inventory to help anaesthetists manage difficult intubations.

Tracheal intubation is performed on many patients receiving general anaesthesia for surgery. Airway misadventures such as inadequate ventilation, difficult intubation and oesophageal intubation are the leading causes of complications involving the respiratory system and are responsible for the most serious injuries (death, brain injury, airway trauma).

At the tournament dinner in 2008, CHEO Foundation President Fred Bartlett surprised everyone by announcing that the hospital had already used $110,000 from the Ryan Williams Fund to buy equipment. He said CHEO had purchased a laparoscopic device for urological surgery less than two weeks earlier and that it was already in service. CHEO officials invited me to come in for a first-hand look at the new equipment

Pictured below is the state-of-the-art ConMed Linvatec Laparoscopic Surgical System that incorporates the latest technology for the Insufflators and includes a Video System. The video system is the most important item giving the best possible image and detail, which is crucial for the surgery. The Dual Port Insufflator produces controlled air pressure to create a cavity for the surgical site inside the body.

When I started raising funds in 2002, I was focused on buying a Holmium laser for the operating room. But in the Spring of 2008, folks from the CHEO Foundation told me they would like to purchase a different piece of equipment - something that would be of greater use to more children. My original goal was to raise $200,000.00 for a laser that in reality, would only help a few kids a year, so my response was, "If it's going to help more children, buy it."

And buy it they did! When I walked into the operating room that day and saw the equipment they had bought with money from the Ryan Williams Fund, it gave me a feeling I've never had before. I can honestly say it was the first time I felt I had made a difference. That feeling truly inspired me and gave me the confidence to keep going strong for a hospital that is always there when it's needed.

In the beginning, I just had a simple desire to give back. But now, I realize the Ryan Williams Fund has too much potential to just call it quits. After forming a committee with some great volunteers and seeing how that committee was really starting to come together, I knew things could only get better - not only my fund but for the kids at CHEO.

I am proud to say I am from Winchester, because it's the support from my community that brought this equipment to the hospital. The generous and happy giving I have seen from my community has touched me deeply.

I know from experience what it's like to leave family and friends and sometimes go outside of the country to receive medical treatment. It can be very lonely and uncomfortable, which makes the hospital stay that much more tiring and stressful, especially on younger children. If I can prevent one child from experiencing a little of what I went through, I shall feel a large measure of success. I want to do as much as I can to make life easier for the kids who go to CHEO for surgery.

There are some truly great doctors at CHEO - some of the best in Canada, but they can always use newer and better equipment. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could lessen the impact of surgery for babies and little kids and maybe even shorten the length of their stay in hospital?

Your support is very much appreciated.