Hamish - Transplant Games medal winner

Otago KIDS Foundation member - Hamish Crossan  represents New Zealand in the Transplant games.

This year KIDS Foundation had the great honour of sponsoring one of our members to attend the Transplant Games. Hamish Crossan was chosen and flew all the way to Switzerland to represent New Zealand. His mum sent a letter to update everyone on his trip.

We want to thank KIDS Foundation for giving Hamish a life time opportunity in sponsoring him to go to Switzerland to attend the Nicholas Green Camp and also to the NZ Transplant Games Assoc. for the tracksuit etc which Hamish is so very proud of!!!!

The trip couldn't have come at a better time in Hamish's life. He is at the perfect age where he is transitioning from child to teenager and it was great for him to go and interact with other kids who live with the similar issues around having a transplanted organ.

Seeing that other kids have scars, have to take medication, and who have to wear copious amounts of sunscreen etc was great for him.

Hamish made lots of friends and really enjoyed himself. He has never felt the cold and has always enjoyed winter sports including going skiing a few times with our school, so he was absolutely in his element in the Swiss Alps. So much so, that he thought he could go every year!!!!

It was a huge journey, just getting there and back, but Hamish seemed to cope well with this and has never complained about the long flights. I think he enjoyed playing games and watching movies without being pestered by his parents to go outside and do something!

It was amazing that Dr Helen Evans agreed to accompany Hamish on the trip and we are so very thankful that she was able to keep an eye on our boy from afar and keep us posted on his wellbeing, given that there was very little communication coming out of the camp.

We did miss him, but this was such a great opportunity for Hamish, so we couldn't let on to him that we had any worries or fears about him travelling to the other side of the world without us. We knew he was in the very best hands he could be with Helen at his side.

From all accounts, it sounds like Hamish represented NZ well, and we are very proud of him and his achievements. It’s a pretty big thing for a 10-year-old boy to do what he did!

Hamish still to this day, is very excited about his medal and he takes the opportunity to tell anyone he can about his trip to Switzerland.

Once again, thank you so much to the Foundation for making this all happen, especially Janet who pulled everything together in a relatively short time frame. 

Cheers Tracy Crossan