‘A bratty kid is a healthy kid’: Montreal Children’s Hospital unveils new fundraising push

The Montreal Children’s Hospital is putting a playful twist on healing with its new “Sorry” campaign, unveiled Tuesday, highlighting the energy kids regain once they recover.

“We celebrate what we call kids returning to being a little bratty,” said Kim Fraser, the hospital’s vice-president of communications, marketing and community relations. “A bratty kid is a healthy kid.”

The campaign features children who have recently been discharged and are already back to their usual mischief.

Ads have been rolled out across the city, including bus shelters and billboards, underscoring the hospital’s message that a full recovery often means the return of noisy, messy, spirited behaviour.

Fraser said donor support is at the heart of those outcomes. “I think it’s the only charge on your credit card that you can smile at,” she said.

CityNews spoke with two parents from Denver who are now living that reality. Annie Mcareavy and Ben Nigg were in Montreal when their daughter, Margaret, was born unexpectedly at just 26 weeks. Mcareavy had been in the city for work when she went into preterm labour.

Nigg received a call at 3 a.m. Denver time. “I got all the information about the water breaking, that she was in the hospital,” he said. “I got on a direct flight here.”

Mcareavy said the past weeks have been overwhelming. “We’re probably just getting out of the full shock. It’s a lot to adjust to being in a different country,” she said. “The care here has been wonderful, so that’s been huge, not having to worry about the hospital care.”

The couple is staying at the Pavillon Kat Demes, a residence supported by the hospital’s foundation for out-of-town families with children receiving care. Families typically stay an average of three months.

“The staff at the pavilion are so welcoming and warm, which is comforting when every second is so stressful,” Mcareavy said. “You just take each day as it comes.”

Nigg said donor-funded support has made a difficult experience manageable. “Try and support the foundation as much as possible,” he said. “This experience would be a lot different if we didn’t have the opportunity to stay so close.”

Longtime foundation spokesperson P.K. Subban is again stepping in to boost donations. The former NHL defenceman will match every contribution made until Dec. 31, up to $250,000.

“He really wanted to make sure families were benefiting from the funds he’s giving,” Fraser said, adding that his contributions help about 9,000 families each year.

But the foundation warns that the hospital’s most pressing needs rely heavily on public support. Nearly half of its yearly revenue comes in between September and December.

“We don’t have anything to offer people other than feeling good that you’ve helped another family going through one of the most difficult times of their lives,” Fraser said.