Press release -
Vitality members donate rewards to build a Dream Room for kids with cancer
Discovery Vitality and the Reach For A Dream Foundation have joined forces to create another Dream Room for children in hospitals – with the third room opening at Chris Hani Baragwanath Paediatric Oncology Ward in Soweto, Johannesburg today.
Designed to be a sanctuary within one of the world’s largest hospitals, the Dream Room is a space where children with life-threatening illnesses can escape their clinical surroundings and experience the joy of being a child. There will eventually be 30 such rooms at various hospitals around the country that supply critical care to hospitalised children between the ages of three and 18.
“Children facing life-threatening illnesses, as well as their parents, need all the support and care they can get,” says Dinesh Govender, CEO of Discovery Vitality. “This particular donation was a result of a MoveToGive campaign that took place during our 10-week Vitality Open campaign in 2018. We’re grateful to both our engaged Vitality members and also to the many Vitality Open participants who made this Dream Room a reality by donating their Vitality Open rewards to MoveToGive.”
The Vitality Open gave all South Africans, whether they were Vitality members or not, the opportunity to take part in Vitality, Discovery’s science-based behavioural programme. Participating members of the public had the opportunity to donate their weekly rewards for getting more active towards building this Dream Room.
“At Discovery, we’re dedicated to making people healthier, and we’re always looking for ways to maximise the positive impact exercise can have on society. By means of our MoveToGive platform, not only can our members improve their own health by getting active, they can choose compassion and make their activity even more far-reaching by contributing to the healing of others.”Since the launch of MoveToGive in 2015, over R8 million has been donated to various causes.
Julia Sotirianakos, CEO of Reach for a Dream Foundation, says, “While we fulfil thousands of dreams for life-threatened children each year, as part of our 30th birthday we set out to create a space for kids to just be kids again and have a happy place to go to while they’re in hospital. Many of these children spend months on end in hospitals while undergoing treatment for serious conditions.”
Govender concludes, “We also want to thank our Vitality Kids partner, Disney South Africa, for sponsoring toys and décor to make the Dream Room a colourful, delightful and stimulating space for children.”
ENDS
To support other Dream Rooms around the country, please contact Natalie Lazaris at natalie@reachforadream.org.za
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About Discovery
Discovery Limited is a South African-founded financial services organisation that operates in the healthcare, life assurance, short-term insurance, savings and investment and wellness markets. Since inception, Discovery has been guided by a clear core purpose – to make people healthier and to enhance and protect their lives. This has manifested in its globally recognised Vitality Shared-Value insurance model, exported to over 19 countries and reaching over 11 million members. Discovery trades on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange, with a market cap of $7 billion.
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