Koala Kids Foundation

Feb 24 2023

What better way for our Fella Healthwear division to get to work than by supporting Koala Kids Foundation whose purpose is to provide small things for children & young people during cancer treatment. Koala Kids mantra is ‘We Believe Happy Helps’ & our team happily developed a Koala Kids Scrub top program designing, sampling, manufacturing, packaging & delivering 5500 Koala Kids Scrub tops just in time for Christmas 2022.

The Koala Kids Volunteers preparing scrubs for distribution.

Amanda Mandie (executive director) and some Koala Kids volunteers preparing the scrub tops for distribution.

Fella Hamilton's collaboration with the Foundation is not only about the local manufacturing of business for our team, it’s also an opportunity to promote this exceptional volunteer-driven, not-for-profit organisation and the amazing powerful work that they do.

These fun scrub tops were delivered to more than 2700 healthcare volunteers who registered for the Koala Kids program. They received two complimentary scrub tops and a Koala Kids pen and folded, re-usable shopping bag. Volunteers are the heart and soul of Koala Kids.

Koala Kids provides a range of activities and provides therapeutic and other resources for children and young people undergoing cancer treatment in hospital and in their homes. Some items are purely for distraction, some educational and others to supplement programs facilitated by child life, art and music therapists, social workers and other specialists. All are intended to help fulfil Koala Kids mission to provide “small things that make a difference to the lives of children and young people during cancer treatment, their families and their healthcare team.

The team at work in the Fella Hamilton factory

Staying true to our support for Australian made, the tops were all manufactured right here in Melbourne, Australia with Ethical Clothing Australian (ECA) accreditation and ISO 9001:2015. This happy collaboration included unique and whimsical illustrations by Koala Kids volunteer Cindy Chong. Fella Hamilton’s head designer Adrienne Roache lead the team, arranging sampling always with a close attention to detail for which Fella Healthwear, a division of Fella Hamilton, is known.

Before being delivered to Koala Kids, it took an army of Fella Hamilton team members to package each set of tops with a pen for the recipients. The entire project took many hands at Fella Hamilton and Koala Kids to create these wonderful scrub tops which are hoped to bring much happiness to healthcare workers, children and young people with cancer and their families.

On February 15^th 2023, to celebrate the kindness and generosity of their partners, sponsors, volunteers and supporters, Koala Kids Foundation held its annual cocktail party to thank those who continue to support the organisation’s vision. The event also marks International Childhood Cancer Day. Fella Hamilton’s owners David & Sharon Hamilton, Fella Hamilton head designer Adrienne Roache & around 200 guests attended the party hosted by executive director Amanda Mandie OAM and Koala Kids programs co-ordinator Jess Bucci.

David Hamilton, Jess Bucci, Adrienne Roache, Sharon, and Amanda.

Left to right: David Hamilton, Jess Bucci (programs co-ordinator, Koala Kids Foundation) Adrienne Roache, Sharon Hamilton and Amanda Mandie OAM (executive director, Koala Kids Foundation)

A truly inspirational woman, Amanda (Mandy) Mandie spoke to our team about Koala Kids Foundation and how the collaboration with Fella Hamilton began.

Q&A: Why Does Koala Kids Exist?

When a baby, child or young person under the age of 26 is diagnosed with cancer, life-saving treatment starts immediately. This throws every aspect of family life into chaos and puts education, jobs, hobbies and family relationships at risk. Koala Kids purpose is to provide happy moments for children and young people during cancer treatment and alleviate the stress on their families and healthcare teams.

Since 2005 we have been delivering exciting and valued programs and activities not offered by other charities to families with children with cancer. We have received generous donations and in-kind support from benefactors who believe in what we do such as Korjo, Suncorp and Provincial Home Living. Independent research in 2020* revealed that the families highly value what we offer. One of our respondents said, “You bring joy to kids’ lives who are going through such a horrible illness. Those little gifts make a child’s treatment day easier to cope with and are a great distraction.”

We have one full-time salaried employee and presently around 80 volunteers in professional, casual, remote, hospital and administrative roles all of whom provide a richly talented resource. Our volunteers are committed to Koala Kids core values of empathy, passion, happiness, purposefulness, collaboration and respect. If anyone is interested in becoming a volunteer, follow this link HERE.

What is the Vision & Impact for Koala Kids?

We impact many paediatric wards across Melbourne and country Victoria and Tasmania and work with the Victorian Paediatric Integrated Cancer Service, a partnership between The Royal Children’s Hospital, Monash Children’s Hospital and the Peter McCallum Cancer Centre and nine major regional hospitals.

When we were running at our maximum (before the pandemic) children, parents, siblings and healthcare workers in the hospitals looked forward to seeing Koala Kids volunteers in their distinctive t-shirts visiting the wards with huge smiles on their faces and a trolley full of activities. These activities include toys, stationery, art resources, games plus small items that help children endure their treatment and manage their pain such as squeeze shapes and our happy magnets that clip onto IV drip poles. We recently commenced providing electric cars for children under seven years to drive to surgery, an exciting development that the children, their parents and carers and the healthcare teams are all enjoying.

In the face of the challenges presented by lockdowns and restricted entry into hospitals, we converted many of our hospital activities into online sessions and provided new programs for families in homes. These included weekend meal deliveries, science experiments, storytelling, fairy parties and cooking sessions. However we are back in the hospitals now and are slowly ramping up our activities while still delivering monthly activities to families at home.

How did you start collaborating with Fella Hamilton to develop the scrub top program?

Nearly two years ago we had decided we wanted to develop a program whereby we could provide healthcare workers caring for children with cancer complimentary Koala Kids themed printed scrub tops. We had been working with a local uniform supplier but they had become too busy to provide our quantities. A close girlfriend whom I met through volunteering with not for profits many years ago told me that Fella Hamilton had been manufacturing scrubs during the pandemic. She suggested I contact them.

Coincidentally I had known Fella and her late husband when I worked at Ragtrader Newspaper in the 1980's. I used to visit them each season and view their collection and report on their business when they were located in St Kilda. I was really happy to contact them to ascertain their interest in providing our scrub tops for our program.

IF YOU WANT TO HEAR MORE FROM AMANDA MANDIE OAM, HERE IS A PODCAST LINK WHICH WAS RECENTLY RECORDED BY ANDREW PURDIE FROM 'THE HIDDEN PHILANTHROPIST' PODCAST LINK HERE.

Healthcare workers wearing the Koala Kids scrub tops

PLAY OUR VIDEO BELOW TO SEE OUR TEAM IN ACTION. FELLA HEALTHWEAR (A DIVISION OF FELLA HAMILTON) OWNERS DAVID & SHARON HAMILTON WEARING THE SCRUB TOPS & HELPING TO PREPARE DELIVERY OF SCRUBS TO THE TEAM AT KOALA KIDS.