Variety’s 46th annual Show of Hearts returns with stories of hope, courage
Telethon helps accident victims like Susan Oliver, who was badly injured in ATV crash
Susan Oliver knew something was wrong almost as soon as she started moving.
The weekend trip to Nanaimo with family last summer was intended to be an active one — with plans for swimming, tubing and water skiing — but the 14- year- old had never driven an ATV before. It made her nervous.
“[ My cousins] were going really fast and they looked really at ease; they were good at it,” Susan recalled. “I didn’t know what I was doing.”
Within moments, the Grade 10 student from Burnaby found herself under the vehicle, pinned between one of its moving wheels and a tree she vaguely remembers hitting.
The collision would result in a broken arm, a broken rib and severe injuries to her skin and muscle tissue up and down the length of her body. Numerous and costly surgeries followed, including one that entailed sewing her feet together for three weeks to help regenerate tissue.
The accident would have been devastating for anyone — and particularly for Susan, who had been studying ballet and had just started training on pointe shoes.
Some expenses were covered but others were not. Jobst garments – compression garments to control scar formation and curb fluid retention, for example, came with a hefty price tag of $ 1,800 per set — and Susan would need several.
That’s when Variety Children’s Charity stepped in. Susan’s family will appear on Variety’s 46th annual Show of Hearts telethon this weekend to tell her story.
In each of the last two years, Variety has helped about 1,300 families that would otherwise have nowhere else to turn, according to executive director Barbie Hislop. The charity assists with a range of expenses, from parking and transit passes — for someone who requires frequent visits to a hospital, for example — to medical equipment and physical and occupational therapy treatment.
Susan’s mother, Patricia, said Variety has helped immensely, not only by covering the cost of burn garments and physiotherapy sessions, but also providing support at a time when the family’s world “has turned upside down.”
“Variety helped us get through it,” she said.
That kind of support accounts for about 40 per cent of Variety’s overall financial assistance, with the remaining 60 per cent going to organizations including Canuck Place, Surrey Memorial Hospital and PALS Autism School in Vancouver, Hislop said.
Variety fundraises throughout the year, with golf tournaments, radiothons, auctions, coin drives, gala dinners and more. Its largest fundraising event is the annual telethon.
This year’s telethon will mix stories of hope from across B. C. with pre- recorded musical performances by renowned artists including Mariah Carey, Bryan Adams, Phil Collins, Adele and Michael Bublé.
Chris Gailus, Jill Krop, Deborra Hope, Sophie Lui, Steve Darling, Robin Gill and Wayne Cox of Global TV will host.
Susan, who is steadily on the mend and now walking again, will appear as part of a segment being organized for Sunday afternoon.
To donate, visit variety. bc. ca or call 310- KIDS ( 5437) — no area code needed.
The telethon airs at 7 p. m. Saturday on Global BC and runs through to Sunday at 6 p. m.
Last year’s telethon raised more than $ 7 million in two days.