Selling tea towels has helped cancer survivor Ruby Seeto fundraise $500,000 over the last decade for Starship Hospital.
At nine years old, Ruby was diagnosed with cancer after a tumour was found in her liver.
What followed that diagnoses was major surgery which removed 70 per cent of Ruby’s liver as well as her gall bladder, and then 14 rounds of chemotherapy over 12 months.
Back in 2007, while finishing treatment for her cancer, Ruby sold her first tea towel to family and friends to fund an international trip with children’s charity Koru Care.
The next year she decided to fundraise for Starship Hospital and give back to those who cared for her during the long months of treatment.
“It has been really nice that I’ve been able to give back to the people that have helped me recover,” Ruby told 1 NEWS NOW.
In 2009, New Zealand linen company Wallace Cotton jumped on board to help Ruby sell her tea towels.
“The first tea towel with Wallace Cotton I did went to the rebuild of the oncology ward up on level seven where I spent a lot of my time recovering from cancer there,” says Ruby.
Over the years, Ruby’s tea towels have supported an ovarian tissue cryopreservation programme, working towards ensuring pre-pubertal girls who are at high risk of infertility related to cancer treatment have an opportunity for fertility preservation.
There have also been projects on the oncology ward, the neonatal simulation programme and an international training fellowship for a Starship doctor.
“It’s been amazing that it’s continued to go on for so long,” says Ruby.
A decade on and more than 84,000 tea towels sold, Ruby has gone on to complete her Bachelor of Commerce and is completing her honours degree in marketing.
This year’s funds from tea towels designed by Ruby and children in Starship Hospital are going to the refurbishment of a phlebotomy lab.
SHARE ME