Parents Kyriae and Adam Simpson have donated a Cuddle Cot to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at RNSH after an extensive fundraising effort.

Bears of Hope Cuddle Cots are refrigerated cots that enable parents to spend an additional 24 hours with a child who has passed away before leaving the hospital.

Kyriae and Adam Simpson sadly lost their daughter Poppy during Kyriae’s pregnancy in March 2020.

As a tribute to Poppy on what would have been her second birthday, Kyriae and Adam started a fundraiser to help parents and families going through a similar situation.

The Simpson’s family initial goal was to raise $6,500 to donate one Cuddle Cot in honour of their daughter, but after a rally of support from community members, Kyriae and Adam had 80 people on board for fundraising.

The fundraiser had people coming together in Adam’s gym to undertake a 24 hour cycle.

“We had 80 people work in teams of five riding for 24 hours in my gym,” Adam said.

“Each rider would ride for 60 minutes before swapping with a team mate. Everyone did 4.48 hours of riding over 24 hours. 

The immense effort raised over $70,000 for Bears of Hope.

On top of donating Cuddle Cots to various hospitals, Adam said the funds will be used to provide support, counselling and gift packs for grieving families so they don’t leave the hospital empty handed.

“The gift pack contained a bear so when we left the hospital we weren’t leaving empty-handed,” he said.