Who We Have Assisted

Kym Bartholomew and his wife with Kym wearing the new mask.

The Individuals’ Charity Inc. has assisted Kym Bartholomew. Kym resides in the Ellenbrook area and has numerous health issues among them diabetes, organ failure, sleep apnoea and has also suffered several strokes recently.  This all puts a huge stress on Kym’s heart plus offers a variety of concerns for Kym’s wife who is his full time carer. Kym applied to TIC for assistance with sleep therapy using continuous positive airways pressure therapy.   Until now Kym has often stopped breathing in his sleep, this has sometimes been up to several times per night.  TIC’s assistance involved providing a personalised sleep mask which places positive pressure into the lungs to ensure continued breathing. There is currently no Medicare funding for this equipment and The Individuals’ Charity and Earnshaw Mattock & Associates Real Estate Agents together have assisted by purchasing the required equipment for Kym.

Dr John Venerys receives the scanner from the Individuals’ Charity (TIC).	SARA SCANNER Assists a Second Person Dr John Venerys (now retired), performed the first total hip replacement operation in WA and has been a well known and respected orthopaedic surgeon for many years, operating in many of our hospitals. He has served on many committees, lectured at many conferences and has taught and examined many medical students and orthopaedic surgeons throughout the years. In 1969 he went to South Vietnam as a volunteer surgeon with the WA Medical Team. Dr Venerys was one of the founding members of the 'Hollywood Orthopaedic Service' in the mid 1970’s combining the Repatriation General Hospital Hollywood and the Sir Charles Gardiner Hospital. Towards the end of 2000, he contracted a very severe type of influenza and was extremely ill, being admitted to Intensive Care several times and finally had to give up his orthopaedic practice in 2001. Some time later he was diagnosed as having Lewybody Disease which is similar to Parkinsons Disease. Shortly after this his eyesight began to deteriorate and he has now been diagnosed as legally blind. Dr Venerys now requires full time care which is provided by his wife Maggie. He is unable to walk unaided and is dependant on his wife for every day needs. The Individuals Charity have presented Dr Venerys with a Sara Scanner. The scanner will scan text books, newspapers and journals converting the written words into a loud audible version. Dr Venerys is looking forward to accessing his medical journals and research. The donation of the Sara Scanner has been made possible with the generosity of The Bear Essentials. Several years ago the Bear Essentials and The Individuals’ Charity purchased the Sara Scanner and presented it to Tammey Fiorini, our first recipient, (see below). Tammey is a young lady who is also legally blind. Tammey was completing a university degree at the time and required the scanner to access course study notes and literature. Tammey has now completed the course and is working plus is a volunteer as a Lifeline Counsellor. Tammey contacted The Individuals’ Charity and suggested that somebody else may now benefit from the use of the scanner.
Damian Caiulo with his mother plus Nikki Hankin, from The Individuals’ Charity (TIC).	Damian Caiulo is 5 years old and lives at home with his parents. Damian has symptomatic West syndrome which has resulted in severe physical, intellectual and sensory disability. Damian has frequent seizures and is dependent on his parents for all his needs. He is dependent on a pump for feeding and is fed via gastrostomy (directly into his stomach), every couple of hours. The pump that the family have currently been using is very large and is not mobile. This has impacted heavily on the family as they have been unable to leave the house as a family since Damian was born. They have been unable to attend family gatherings, social or community outings, even a trip to the supermarket is not practical. Damian requires his meals regularly as it is important that his medication is given to him with food. The Individuals Charity (TIC) along with The Bear Essentials have purchased Damian a Joey Portable Pump. This can be fitted to Damian’s wheelchair. This will not only assist with social and family outings but will be a benefit when the family have to attend the hospital for regular appointments. Until now Damian has had to go without meals when attending medical appointments. The Bear Essentials have generously donated the funds required to purchase the Joey Portable Pump. Please consider supporting The Bear Essentials by contacting them on 1300 885 133 to arrange a display container for your business. Every time you make a chocolate purchase from the display you will be helping someone local like Damian. We would also like to thank Kendal from Shendals Signature Salon in Applecross who has generously donated a voucher for Mrs Caiulo for a complimentary pamper pack.
Committee members from The Individuals’ Charity (TIC) with Janet Brownfield and her mother Deb.	The Individuals’ Charity Inc. has assisted 8 year old Janet Brownfield who has Autism, epilepsy and heart disease. Janet lives in the Eastern Hills suburbs. Janet does not talk and so often relies on pictures to communicate what she wants. Until now Janet has been using a computer program to communicate with her family, teacher and friends. However the current computer program has limited pictures and even more frustrating – sometimes displays the incorrect pictures, which is disappointing for both Janet and those around her. TIC has purchased a new software package for Janet’s computer. This software package will allow Janet to communicate more freely and will help increase her learning and social opportunities. Autistic programs have not been funded by the government and the current therapy programs are expensive. Janet’s family also work with other autistic children, their teachers and their families assisting them with communicating and learning. The Individuals Charity would like to thank The Bear Essentials who have provided the funds necessary to help young Janet. Their support has made purchasing this software possible. Thankyou.
Anne Jeavons from the Hills Auslan Circle and Karen Treanor from The Individuals’ Charity.	The Individuals’ Charity Inc. has assisted Anne Jeavons from the Hills Auslan Circle with the provision of a facsimile machine. The Hills Auslan Circle (HAUC) is a community group dedicated to working with and for Deaf and Hard of Hearing people in the Hills. The HAUC is currently running a series of free seminars in the Hills to educate and inform the wider community about deafness, culturally-Deaf people and Auslan, their language. HAUC applied to TIC for a facsimile machine to assist them with communicating within the community. Karen Treanor a committee member of The Individuals’ Charity (TIC), mentioned that she possessed a spare facsimile machine that she was willing to donate to HAUC. Thank you Karen. HAUC was contacted with the details of the facsimile machine and announced that this would be ideal.
Pat Cahill from The Individuals’ Charity with James.	The Individuals’ Charity Inc. has assisted James, a young man residing in the eastern suburbs of Perth. James lives with his family and his parents who are full time carers. James has a brain tumour and has asked TIC to provide a family holiday by the beach for his family. This will provide James with some fun family memories, and a respite from constant medical procedures and appointments. This will also importantly provide his parents with some much needed time out. This holiday has been made possibly by The Individuals’ Charity, our sponsors The Bear Essentials. We would also like to thank Lynell from The Sorrento Beach Resort who has offered much assistance with accommodation requirements plus AQWA who have provided complimentary tickets for the family to visit the aquarium. If you would like to support The Individuals’ Charity, become a member or sponsor. As a business have you considered helping your local community by sponsoring someone like James? The Individuals’ Charity can make it happen.
Bill Osborne, Jodie Osborne, Doreen Osborne and Maryanne Phillips for The Individuals’ Charity Inc.	The Individuals’ Charity Inc. has assisted Jodie Osborne and her family by supplying and fitting a roof mounted wheelchair hoist to the family vehicle. Jodie is a young lady with severe intellectual disabilities, which means that she is heavily dependent on her manual wheelchair for her mobility needs. Jodie lives at home with her parents. Due to health reasons, they are experiencing difficulties lifting the wheelchair into the family vehicle. This means that Jodie is unable to join the family on outings unless somebody accompanies them to assist with loading and unloading her wheelchair. The wheelchair hoist is electric powered and will lift a folded manual wheelchair from the ground and onto a rack on the roof. This enables Jodie to continue to participate in community outings with her family on a regular basis. The donation of this piece of equipment has been made possible with the generosity of The Bear Essentials. The Bear Essentials raise funds for projects like this by donating to TIC a percentage of money received from the sale of chocolates that are purchased from the containers that are placed inside businesses.
Kerry Kuper, David Mattock from Earnshaw Mattock & Associates and Paula Ward from Disability Services Commission.	The Individuals’ Charity Inc. has assisted Kerry Kuper with the purchase of an electrically adjustable bed. Kerry is disabled from a past stroke that has resulted in paresis of her left side, severe back pain and breathing difficulties. Kerry is on a feeding pump at night. When lying flat in a conventional bed she experiences reflux and has even been hospitalised for problems relating to this. An electrically adjustable bed with head end elevation allows for better positioning plus allows Kerry to independently alter her lying position to suit her own comfort levels plus bring herself to a sitting position more easily. The donation of this piece of equipment has been made possible with the generosity of Earnshaw Mattock & Associates Real Estate Agents. Earnshaw Mattock & Associates have offices in both Glen Forrest and Guildford and have kindly donated the funds required to purchase this bed for Kerry. With the support of businesses sponsoring us, we can keep our administration and overheads at a bare minimum. This eliminates the need to `fundraise’ using conventional methods such as quiz nights and raffles.
Graham Bendow (Occupational Therapist), Sharon McSkimming (RN from St Vincent’s Nursing Home), Lorna Allen plus Maryanne Phillips (TIC), Denise (EN from St Vincent’s Nursing Home) with Dorothy Saunders.	TIC has assisted Dorothy Saunders, a long term resident of St Vincent’s Nursing Home in Guildford with the manufacture of a customised postural support on a wheelchair. This chair will allow Dorothy to sit in a more comfortable position. Prior to this Dorothy has been unable to sit up as this causes pain and skin breakdown. Providing this chair will help to prevent skin sores on pressure areas plus this now allows Dorothy access to activities beyond her bed. Importantly, Dorothy can now be included in daily social activities in the nursing home. The donation of this piece of equipment has been made possible with the generosity of The Bear Essentials. The Bear Essentials raise funds for projects like this by donating to TIC a percentage of money received from the sale of chocolates that are purchased from the containers that are placed inside businesses.
Disability Services Commission Local Area Co-ordinator, Cerys Corrins, and Scott Bell with mother, Christine, and TIC committee member Pat Cahill.	The Individual's Charity has assisted a young West Australian, Scott Bell by paying for his lifetime membership into the Planned Individual Networks (PIN). PIN helps people by providing a network of trained people to assist them in all areas of their lives, including life skills, social skills, domestic help, home maintenance, financial advice and recreational activities. Scott has an intellectual disability and works part-time and attends TAFE part-time. This network will assist Scott for the rest of his life. This was made possible with the assistance and generosity of The Bear Essentials.

We have just purchased a Legend 5 piece Drum Kit for Andrew Johnson. Andrew has high functioning autism and is in Year 8 and enrolled in the music program at Forrestfield Senior High School. Andrew has commenced music or percussion lessons with the school and this has greatly improved his confidence and self esteem. To get the most from this tuition he requires a drum kit to enable him to practise at home. Andrew has been having lessons for several months at school now and is extremely keen and the results are speaking for themselves. This will not only benefit Andrews self confidence but will also assist his gross motor skills and physiotherapy progress.

Amy Wells is a young lady residing in the southern suburbs of Perth and required wheelchair restraint straps for the family vehicle. Amy is reliant on her wheelchair for all her mobility requirements. Unfortunately the existing vehicle restraint system was unsuitable due to wear and tear. This was restricting Amy’s access to the community. The new straps provided by TIC will enable Amy to travel safely and enjoy the support of her social and school activities.

Let us introduce a young West Australian lady, Ms Tammey Fiorini, who is legally blind.  We have purchased a SARA Scanner that will enable her to scan textbooks and newspapers.  This will assist her to complete her counselling studies at Notre Dame University, help her in day-to-day duties, and even with future employment. Tammey is currently studying the 3-year degree on a part time basis.  Family members and friends have been reading the course text to her or recording onto tape.  This can be very time consuming plus she has been reliant on other people’s ability to do this as required. The Sara Scanner was presented to Ms Fiorini at the Association of the Blind of WA office in Vic Park on 13th October, 2005.  This scanner will provide independence and assist Ms Fiorini with future employment opportunities.  The donation of this piece of equipment has been made possible with the generosity of The Bear Essentials.  The Bear Essentials raise funds for projects like this by donating a percentage of money received from chocolates that are purchased from the containers that are placed inside businesses.

Photographs of groups and individuals will be published by us from time to time. You should contact us if you object to any or all photographs containing your image being published, and we will ensure that these wishes are respected. If such a photograph has already been posted, we will remove it where possible at the earliest possible opportunity.