Since forming as an Australian children’s charity in 1988, Starlight has brightened the lives of seriously ill and hospitalised children, and their families, throughout Australia.

Westnet is thrilled to be the major Gold Sponsor of the Starlight Express Van – helping to bring fun and deliver the dreams for which the Captain Starlight Foundation is renowned to children all over Australia, including regional and remote areas.

Here’s an update we recently received from the Captain Starlight, detailing a trip south of Perth to bring a little joy to the some young Bunbury patients:

Recently Perth Captains blasted down in Bunbury!!

We had a great time with the kids there and after getting lost in the corridors (oops) we stumbled upon the most amazing artist Tyler. He is only 7 and was the best drawer EVER! He drew a still life picture of us and we couldn’t top it so he won a prize!!

We also caught up with Jack and his little sister and had so much fun with clay making his favourite character Lightning McQueen!

It was a huge day and we were blown away with all talent down there!! We’ve included a pic of Tyler’s drawing….IT’S AMAZING!!

Cheery-pip )

Captain Starlight

To kids like Tyler and Jack, Captain Starlight is a magic super hero who brings a massive ray of sunshine to their lives, helping them forget their pain – even if just for a moment.

You might not know that 40% of children with a chronic illness live in regional Australia, so it’s plain to see the Starlight Express Van has a lot of work to do.

At Westnet, we couldn’t be prouder to be a part of their inspirational efforts!

There’s one family of Westnet customers that are very thoughtful indeed – all the way from the kids up.

Inspired by the work of the Starlight Children’s Foundation, Chelsea and Shannon Hardman (aged 12 and 10 respectively) are embarking on a mammoth trek just before Christmas.

With over 400 seriously ill children admitted to hospitals across Australia every day during this Christmas period, Chelsea and Shannon’s support has come at a critical time.

The journey, chaperoned by parents Tania and Geoff, is set to begin at Cape Naturaliste on the 16th of December. The family will then venture through some reasonably heavy terrain to complete the 134km walk to Cape Leeuwin, collecting funds along the way.

The Hardman’s aren’t taking the trek lightly – they’ve already been in heavy training for some time, with Shannon doing Surf Lifesaving, both girls dancing regularly and Tania frequenting the gym daily. On top of that, they’ve been walking most places and have already completed quite a few 8km and 9km walks (the trek will see them doing around 20kms a day).

The girls have already managed to raise over $1000 towards the Starlight Christmas Campaign through setting up their own fundraising page.

Check it out if you’d like to donate: http://www.everydayhero.com.au/capetocapetrek Starlight needs to raise $1.5 million to connect every child to the happiness Christmas time brings with it. This Christmas Starlight is asking the community to donate and send a special ‘Message of Hope’ to all seriously ill children in hospital. Captain Starlight will ensure that Australia’s ‘Messages of Hope’ will reach sick kids in all our Starlight Express Rooms and at their bedsides across the country.

To send a Message of Hope simply donate at www.starlight.org.au or call 1300 727 827.

For those of you who missed Episode One, the Starlight Express Van (SEV) is a brilliant Starlight Foundation initiative, where Captain Starlight and his bubbly team travel the West’s regional areas to entertain seriously ill kids.

As massive Starlight Foundation supporters, imagine our delight as we came across a cheerful postcard from down in Albany, addressed to everyone at Westnet. Here’s what Captain Starlight had to say:

“Hi Westnet! We are in lovely Albany and other than being a tad cold and windy, we are having a great time. We met some awesome kids at the school and the hospital – however we are yet to see a whale!

Thanks for all your help with our SEV (Starlight Express Van) program – heaps of smiles from all the kids in Albany!

Love,
Captain Starlight”

Stay tuned for our next update on the adventures of Captain Starlight!