The Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island is looking to raise $3 million to build a new “home away from home” for people travelling to Nanaimo for children’s healthcare, similar to Jeneece Place in Victoria.
The facility will be built at the Nanaimo Regional General Hospital campus with room for 16 bedrooms with an eye towards opening by spring 2027, if it can raise the funds in time.
Overall, the foundation is looking to raise $10 million, though it says it has received $7 million so far through “assurances from the community,” including from Coastal Community Credit Union, Budget, the Rogers Foundation and an anonymous donor who provided “an astounding $2 million.”
The foundation is now hoping to make up the remaining $3 million in the next 18 months, with the new facility being called “Jesse’s House.”
Construction on the three-storey home begins this week.
The facility is named after the late Jesse Shanahan, whose family used Jeneece Place in Victoria after she was admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit at Victoria General Hospital.
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The Shanahan family was overwhelmed when they were first rushed to the ICU in Victoria, saying they had nowhere to stay and no budget put aside for sudden accommodations.
They ended up staying at Jeneece Place, and when the family returned to Nanaimo they found people who were travelling to the harbour city for their children’s healthcare needs faced similar issues.
“When my family stayed at Jeneece Place, it gave us comfort during one of the hardest times of our lives,” said Sheri Shanahan, Jesse’s mother.
“I am so excited to have worked alongside Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island to bring the vision of Jesse’s House to life.”
“This home away from home will have a huge impact on the lives of Island families, providing a safe, warm place where they can receive the same support that meant so much to us, and be just steps away from their child,” she added.
Jesse’s House will be the third home away from home created by the Children’s Health Foundation, after establishing Jeneece Place in 2012 and Q̓ ʷalayu House in Campbell River in 2021.
The Children’s Health Foundation says about 30 per cent of all babies born at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital come from outside Greater Nanaimo, and that about 50 per cent of premature babies born at NRGH come from outside the area.
“The Nanaimo community has stepped up in such a big way to meet the growing demand for a mid-Island home away from home,” said Veronica Carroll, CEO, Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island.
“With no government funding for this project, every bedroom, shared space, and moment of support this home provides to families will be thanks to the generosity and foresight of people in this community. It is truly inspiring.”
Donations to Jesse’s Place can be made on the Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island website.
-With files from Kendall Hanson
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