Community Stories

The Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation is celebrating a historic milestone for kids' health with the Government of Alberta's announcement of a land location for a new, stand-alone Stollery Children's Hospital on the University of Alberta's South Campus. 

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From training the next generation of pediatric specialists to funding state-of-the-art equipment and supporting family-centred care, gifts to the SCHF help give all kids the best chance to live long and healthy lives. Find out more about how donations have transformed pediatric care in the foundation’s annual report to the community.

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Pam Thomson-Kai’s son Sawyer was just seven months old when he stopped breathing. He was rushed to hospital, where he was revived and put on a breathing machine. Then the doctors asked his parents whether they could give him a tracheostomy. 

It was a scary decision, but Thomson-Kai and her then husband felt they had no choice because Sawyer’s life was at stake. 

Now, a team at the University of Alberta, including Thomson-Kai and three other parent partners, are working to better understand and create tools to support other parents facing that decision — and all of the challenges that come with it. In their recently published paper in the journal Frontiers in Pediatrics, the U of A team looked at the best research available on the emotional, practical and ethical considerations for families who have to decide whether to give their child a tracheostomy. They analyzed 17 studies and identified seven themes, including finding hope, paying the bills, navigating changing relationships and adjusting to a new normal for life at home. 

Principal investigator Maria Castro-Codesal, an associate professor of pediatrics and expert on home ventilation, credits the four parent partners on the team with refocusing the research away from just one decision point to broader questions about what families need at every step of the process.

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The Board of Trustees for the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation are thrilled to announce the appointment of Karen Faulkner as President & CEO, effective immediately. Highly regarded as a relationship builder, Karen brings with her a wealth of knowledge and more than 30 years of progressive development experience. With a career that spans both the corporate and charitable sectors, Karen has led multiple teams through organizational change and transformational campaigns at RBC, TELUS and NorQuest College. Karen has dedicated over a decade to advancing kids' health as the Foundation's Chief Operating Officer and, most recently, as the Interim President and CEO.

The U of A Community Pantry opened in Rutherford Library in January 2024 after a year of planning. The Pantry is meant to fill a specific gap in food access on campus: confidential, anonymous, and drop-in access to healthy food! 

The U of A Campus Pantry is looking for units, departments, student groups, and other collections of people who are willing to adopt the pantry for one week. Adopting the pantry means committing to collectively fundraise, then purchase and drop off food throughout the week by sharing the work within your group and broader networks. You can read all about the experience in their Adopt-a-Week Guide for Supporters before signing up. The Campus Food Bank team has developed resources and guidance for logistics and promotions that will be shared once you sign up.