Companionship Program

You can help support KessiaCare Foundation directly by becoming one of Kessia's Companions.

Kessia's Companions donate goods, services or money to the Foundation's public fund.

There are three levels of sponsors in our Companionship Program.

Unicorn Level Sponsors. Donations of $5,000 or more.

Dolphin Level Sponsors. Donations of $3,000 to $5,000.

Butterfly Level Sponsors. Donations of $1,000 to $3,000.

Daisy Level Sponsors. Donations of $500 to $1,000.

Donations of any amount, goods or services will be most gladly accepted, appreciated and acknowledged.

At present, KessiaCare Foundation is a non-profit company limited by guarantee. It is our hope to lodge a request with the Australian Taxation Office for Deductible Gift Recipient status by September 2003.

If this will affect your company's ability to make a donation at present, please check back later in the year to see whether we have obtained DGR status.

Media liaison

The Foundation has comenced media liasons with our first article to be published in The Echo newspaper, the largest paper in circulation on the Pellarine Peninsula, Victoria where Rainbow Cottage is located.

We will follow this by contacting editors of community and state/territory level newspapers, initially in Victoria and the ACT.

It is our plan to engage a publicist to assist us in publicizing KessiaCare through major print media and television.

"Marketing" KessiaCare Foundation

KessiaCare will be advertised through major cancer networks and other agenices dealing with life threatening disease. We will also seek permission to advertise through paediatric and other hospitals by way of noticeboards, newsletters and information brochures.

The Foundation also aims to establish a close working relationship with Ronald McDonald House Charities so that families using these facilities may come to know about KessiaCare Foundation, and in particular, about Rainbow Cottage in Ocean Grove.

Another important link will be through social workers and palliative care services. Once we have established links with these agencies, we will ask them to pass on brochures about the Foundation to families with whom they come into contact and who may benefit from KessiaCare services.

Benefits to Kessia's Companions

Apart from the obvious benefit of knowing you have helped bring relief to families in the midst of crisis, additional benefits include:

Having your name and/or logo associated with KessiaCare Foundation in all material provided to the media.

We have made it a standard request in our media kit that any article published about the Foundation makes mention of our Companionship Program.

Knowing that 100% of money donated through sponsors is returned directly to KessiaCare activities.

We are able to do this because we volunteer our time to administer and manage the Foundation. We work from a home office and donate towards administrative costs or use money raised from selling KessiaCare Products to help with admin costs and overheads, such as printing and postage.

Knowing that your money supports a small enterprise that benefits families with no other means of financial assistance.

A long term illness can be financially debilitating. Most often, carers must take a significant period off work, have additional travel and accommodation expenses while seeking treatment, and may have expensive medical bills. They may be in desperate need of practical home help, cleaning services, home nursing, etc.

Many large and well established agencies can assist financially in a variety of ways if the palliative person falls within thier area of care.

KessiaCare aims to provide a 'safety net' for families who can't gain assistance from other agencies and are in need of financial help. The Foundation is a fund of last resort.

How you can join Kessia's Companions

Under construction!

If you would more information about our companionship program, or would like to donate to the Foundation, please contact us.

Kessia's Companions

A thousand thank you's from our hearts
to all those who have so generously supported
KessiaCare Foundation.

Kessia with best buds Joshua, Amy and Laura
onboard the Coongoola, 5 May 2002

Unicorn Level Donors $5,000 or more
Playspace Playgrounds Pty Ltd
Andrew Chang*
Palliative Care Victoria

Dolphin Level Doners $3,000 to $5,000

Butterfly Level Doners $1,000 to $3,000
Julie and David Blackwell
Murray and Merrin Dowty
Bruce and Paul Drake, Home Hardware, Ocean Grove
Ross and Corrine Parke, The Good Guys, Geelong
Susie and Geoff, The Rolling Pin Pie and Cake Shop

Daisy Level Doners $500 to $1,000
Ocean Grove YWCA
Wattyl Paints
Nylex
Ray's Outdoors, Geelong
Wallace Park Linen

Special thanks to

CJ Keane
Real Estate Agents
Ocean Grove

Michael Bannon
Partner
Duesburys Chartered Accountants

Christopher G. Chenoweth
Solicitor

John Ahearn
Solicitor
Graeme C. Nettle and Associates

* Andrew, Kessia's godfather and wonderful uncle, is our third founding director of KessiaCare. Andrew made it possible for us to purchase Rainbow Cottage, being one of two loan guarantors (the other being Geoff). Geoff and Andrew are essentially paying off the mortgage on Rainbow Cottage while we seek funds from sponsors and donations. Without Andrew, we could never have come this far and Rainbow Cottage would still be a dream.

Acknowledgments for Rainbow Cottage

Thank you!

KessiaCare would like to gratefully acknowledge the following businesses for their generous support of Rainbow Cottage, Ocean Grove, Victoria.

Although they didn't ask us to, we have posted links to these businesses and ask that you pay them a visit or remember them when you need to do business in that area.

Major donors/suppliers

Playspace Playgrounds Pty Ltd for an outdoor play unit from their Streamline range of equipment. The unit has three platforms, a slide, fireman's pole, and wiggly ladder.

Home Hardware, Ocean Grove for the donation of an outdoor patio heater and four burner BBQ, as well as a 20% discount on anything we buy from Home Hardware.

Ross Parke The Good Guys, Geelong for donating two column heaters, toaster, electric jug and iron, plus supplying at cost price a large range of whitegoods and electricals.

Wattly Paints for donating indoor house paint to repaint throughout the entire cottage.

Forty Winks, Geelong for providing at wholesale price two queen beds, two single beds, and one trundle bed, each with mattress, pillows and manchester.

Nylex for providing parts for an inground, computerised garden watering system.

Ray's Outdoors, Geelong for a seven piece outdoor timber setting.

Willow Park Linen for rugs, cushions, towels, kitchen and bathroom accessories, and quilt sets.

Other donors

Addendum II Pty Ltd (incorporating Mighty Minds, Early Childhood Publications and James Hamilton Jigsaws) for a wide range of toys, games, wallcharts and jigsaws

AirServices Australia, Information Management Services (where Kessia's Uncle Andrew works) for a $300 donation which we used to buy over $700 worth of pool toys, beach toys, beach towels and kitchenware (Denise is a bargain shopper!)

Aussie Wool Quilts for two single woolen quilts

Bark King, Melbourne for a truckful of playground mulch

Big W Discount Stores for three single electric blankets, a popcorn maker and blender

Billabong Australia for a child's spring suit

Educational Experience for LEGO bricks

Envirogreen for garden mulch and soil improver

EzyDVD for a selection of DVDs and videos

HPM for electrical switches and garden lights

Mattel Toys for a selection of games and toys

Network Video for 10 children and family classic videos

O'Neill Australia Pty Ltd for four wetsuits/spring suits and four rash tops in various sizes.

Sabco for a large range of cleaning products

Ripcurl for two spring suits

Roadshow Entertainment for 6 DVDs for children and family viewing

The Sleep Doctor, Fyshwick, ACT for two children's doona cover sets

Universal Pictures Videos for a selection of videos.

For generous consideration of services provided

Mick O'Brien, Handybloke, (Clifton Springs, Victoria, Mobile 0418 164 989), for house painting and general entertainment. Mick and Annie are also opening a nautical themed shop in August 2003. Please visit them at Sea Jargon, just off the main street in Queenscliff, Victoria.

Frank Verhoeff, Fix it Quick Home Maintenance, (Drysdale, Victoria, Ph. 52511129), for house painting, Joshua chatting and wall building. Frank amazed us with just how quickly you can dismantle part of a kitchen, wall up half a room and make a new door way.

Steve and Cathy Flynn, Traditional Painter, (Ocean Grove, Ph. 5255 5667), for donating their services in painting all the doors in Rainbow Cottage.

Malcolm Mercer, Ceramic Tilers, (Bellarine area, Ph. 52232586) for a generous discounted rate on tiling 50m of flooring.

Geoff's Dial-A-Garbo Bale Service, (Bellarine area, Ph. 5251 3073) for rubbish removal at half price.

Kim Brasiers Carpet Service, (Bellarine area, Ph. 5254 2857), for free carpet cleaning of our cottage.

For reductions in the cost of goods purchased

National Tiles, (Grovedale, Victoria, Ph. 5244 2466) for supplying 60m of floor tiles at cost.

Bellarine Garden Ornaments, (Ocean Grove, Victoria, Ph. 5255 1952) for providing ornaments for our fairy garden below cost.

Barbeques Galore, (Grovedale, Victoria, Ph. 5241 2050) for poviding two garden benches below cost.

J & G Carpet Clearance Centre, (Newtown, Victoria, Ph. 5222 8355) for reducing the price on an already discounted room size of carpet.

ABOUT KESSIA  Please visit Kessia's web site