CHEO Telethon raises record $12.3 million to support CHEO
Residents of Ottawa, eastern Ontario and western Quebec helped make the 40th CHEO Telethon the biggest one yet, raising a record $12.3 million to support life-saving care and research at the children's hospital.
CHEO President and CEO Alex Munter says the record fundraising total comes as CHEO continues to see an increased demand for its programs and services.
"On behalf of everyone at CHEO….this is amazing. We have a growing number of children, we have increased demand and this help and support from the community means everything to us," Munter said at the end of the CHEO Telethon.
"CHEO is this community's hospital and this telethon is the expression of that. We're just so grateful."
The $12.3 million total was announced at the end of the six-hour CHEO Telethon on CTV Ottawa on Sunday.
"What do you say other than, wow! Think about what we’ll be able to do with that $12 million and all I can say is thank you to everybody involved," CHEO Foundation President and CEO Steve Read said.
The telethon introduced viewers to some of the families who rely on CHEO for care, along with the amazing doctors, nurses and staff who provide care to thousands of children and youth. It was also a chance to celebrate the community's support for CHEO over the past year through dozens of fundraisers and events.
The CHEO Telethon wrapped up on CTV Ottawa Sunday evening, raising a record $12.3 million to support the children's hospital. (Josh Pringle/CTV News Ottawa)
The CHEO Foundation says $600,000 was raised over the past two weeks, while $11.7 million was raised during the year-long campaign that included dozens of events.
Munter says CHEO is now looking to "right-size" the pediatric healthcare system, but it will take a while.
"If you think about a hospital as like a box. We have to do the urgent, emergent stuff. When that expands to fill most of the box, you do not have enough room for all the planned and scheduled activities – the diagnostic imaging, the preventive mental health care, the specialist appointments. So our box is too small and that means kids wait too long, not for the urgent or emergent stuff, but for a specialist appointment, for a development rehabilitation, and so we need a bigger box," Munter said on Sunday.
"That's what we mean by right-sizing the system; more people, more programs and more space. We're in a phase now at CHEO, we call it 'Here We Grow,' where we're going to build a bigger and better CHEO, with the support of the community, to be able to respond more quickly to the needs of kids and families."
Money raised during the CHEO Telethon supports life-saving treatment, the purchase of state-of-the-art medical equipment and research at the children's hospital.
"When people come through the doors looking for care and treatment, there's just about every aspect of that care and every aspect of their treatment that is either funded by or enhanced by the community's support," Read said.
"Equipment is not funded by the province, so the community is helping us buy the specialized pediatric equipment that we need so badly. But there's also so many of the great programs; the things that make CHEO go from an OK hospital to a great hospital."
The CHEO Foundation says the CHEO Telethon is a great opportunity to showcase how the community supports the hospital through the year.
"This is such a wonderful opportunity for us to recognize and acknowledge and thank all the wonderful support we get from the community all year long," Read said.
"We live in a great community. All day long, we've seen some of the small businesses, large businesses, school groups, service clubs, all kinds of folks – these are the folks that are putting on golf tournaments and galas and backyard barbecues and supporting us in whatever way they can over the course of the year."
Last year's CHEO Telethon raised $11.8 million to support CHEO.
To learn more of the CHEO Telethon and meet the six CHEO children and their families profiled during the telethon, visit cheotelethon.com.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.
Powerful tornado tears across Nebraska, weather service warns of 'catastrophic' damage
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States.