When Delmarie walks through the doors of the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital, she isn’t simply visiting a place. She is returning to a hospital that has been part of her life for almost as long as she can remember. Her story began in 1967, when she was just nine months old. “I pulled a bucket of boiling water over myself,” she recalls. The accident left her with severe burns. Her mother rushed her to the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital, terrified for her baby. “My mom always told me that as she took my baby grow off, my skin came with it.” While doctors and nurses worked urgently to treat the tiny infant on the third floor, Delmarie’s mother waited anxiously downstairs. “She said she could hear me screaming from the ground floor.”
It was every parent’s worst nightmare. But it was also the beginning of a lifelong relationship with a hospital that would continue to care for Delmarie throughout her childhood. The burns were not the last time she would need specialist care. Like many adventurous children, Delmarie jokes that she “was burnt more than once,” and the hospital became a familiar place for her family. Then, at the age of five, she developed asthma. Under the care of the late Dr Weinberg and the dedicated team at Red Cross, she received the treatment she needed to thrive. “Today I’ve outgrown the asthma,” she says with a smile. “It’s been a good journey, and it’s all thanks to Red Cross.”
For Delmarie, the hospital has always represented more than medical care. It represents hope, compassion and the chance to grow up. As the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital celebrates its 70th anniversary, her story is one of millions that reflect the hospital’s remarkable legacy. Since opening its doors in 1956, the hospital has cared for generations of children, becoming a place where expert care and compassion have changed countless lives.
“There has been amazing work done over the last 70 years,” says Delmarie. “I’m almost as old as the hospital.” Looking ahead, she believes the future is just as bright. “So the next 70 years are going to be even better.” Her final message is simple, heartfelt and filled with gratitude: “Happy Birthday, Red Cross.”
As the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital celebrates seven decades of hope, healing and innovation, stories like Delmarie’s remind us that every child treated today has the opportunity to become tomorrow’s living testament to the life-changing care found within these walls.
By supporting the Children’s Hospital Trust, you are helping ensure that future generations of children receive the same expert care, and second chances that have defined the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital for the past 70 years, and for the next 70 years to come.
