The Jigsaw Hospice in Carlisle is one of the first children’s hospices in the UK to receive the latest Virtual Reality Immersive learning technology from Lifelites and the Freemasons of Cumberland and Westmorland.
On Tuesday, 9th October The Deputy Provincial Grand Master, W.Bro William Morley and His wife Jessie, accompanied by W. Brothers Peter Clark and Jeremy Aspen had the pleasure of presenting the Virtual Reality system on behalf of lifelites to the children and young people at Jigsaw.
Time is so precious for the children and young people who come to Jigsaw, and the technology which Lifelites has donated can help them do they the things they never thought possible. They can play games with their friends, be creative with art and music, control something for themselves and communicate with their family, perhaps for the very first time. Most importantly it can help them create and record precious memories which will be treasured by their loved ones forever.
A Lifelites package of equipment, which includes training and technical support services provided by the charity costs around £50,000 over its four year lifespan, and is donated completely free of charge. The charity will replace the technology every four years.
Jigsaw is one of the first hospices in the country to receive a donation of Virtual Reality (VR) technology from Lifelites. This technology can immerse these young people in make believe worlds, or can take them to the other side of the planet, all from the comfort of the hospice. They can fly in space, go on safari, sit under the Northern Lights or even climb Mount Everest.
The children also received an Eyegaze. This is a piece of equipment which allows those with limited mobility to control a computer using just their eyes. By using the Eyegaze, children who struggle to communicate with their family and their carers are able to do so.
The charity also donated a whole host of other equipment, specially adapted for the children at the hospice. The package includes iPads and touchscreen computers with suitable apps, games and communication software, cameras to record memories and video games consoles with adapted controllers.
Patricia Livsey, Chief Executive at Jigsaw, Cumbria’s Children’s Hospice, said: “It is wonderful to receive a fantastic donation of technology from Lifelites, I know it will make a difference to all the children and young adults we care for at Jigsaw.
“The previous donations we have received from Lifelites have always proved to be incredibly popular with all our children, young adults and staff here at the children’s hospice. Each item makes a huge difference to the range of activities which take place here at Jigsaw and I am sure all the children and young adults will be looking forward to using the new equipment over the coming months.
“We would like to say a huge thank you to Lifelites for this fantastic donation, as well as thanking the generosity of their supporters who helped to make the donation possible.”
Simone Enefer-Doy, Chief Executive of Lifelites said: “We are delighted to be able to provide this magical technology for the children and young people at Jigsaw. This technology will help them escape the confines of their conditions to do things they never dreamed of, for as long as it is possible. We couldn’t have provided this package if it wasn’t for the generosity of our donors, so for this we are incredibly grateful.”
Lifelites has donated equipment to every children’s hospice in the British Isles over the last 18 years, and continues to provide new technology and ongoing support to ensure that children in hospices have unlimited possibilities.
Lifelites was only able to donate this equipment thanks to the generosity of donors. They were Freemasons from Cumberland and Westmorland, Dobies Charitable Trust, Children with Cancer UK and GamesAid.
Lifelites
Lifelites began as a pilot project of the RMTGB in 1999 with the idea of providing fun and educational technology packages for children in hospices. Now a charity in its own right their work has expanded to meet the growing demand from the mushrooming network of children’s hospices (currently 50 across the British Isles) serving around 9,000 children and their families.
