Elise Little with her ‘miracle’ 17-month-old Marcel at Canberra Hospital Foundation’s Give Me Five launch. Photo: Thomas Lucraft.
Elise Little’s third child arrived in Canberra Hospital at midnight on Christmas Day, 2023.
Elise had suffered a life-threatening placental abruption and her baby boy was born unresponsive.
“The hospital team resuscitated him and he went straight on life support,” Elise recalls.
“We were told he had lost oxygen … he was taken for an MRI, which showed his brain and brain stem were damaged and he was unlikely to survive.”
Elise, her husband Guy and their two children Amelie (3 at the time) and Darcy (2) were connected to the hospital’s paediatric palliative care team to prepare their goodbyes to the baby they had named Marcel.
They were introduced to nurse Kendell Smith, there to help the distraught family navigate the unimaginable.
“Kendell was so sweet, she visited us regularly, found books for the kids to help them understand what was happening and guided us when we were just so overwhelmed,” Elise says.
Kendell clearly recalls meeting the family in those heartbreaking circumstances.
“Marcel had suffered a severe hypoxic brain injury and his prognosis was very poor,” Kendell says.
“The team wasn’t sure he would ever breathe on his own.”
But his parents were determined to give Marcel a chance.
“We are Christians and we decided to take him off life support and see if he could take a breath on his own,” Elise says.
At the last moment – just as the team was about to re-intubate – Marcel took a breath.
“It was a miracle really,” Elise says.
“Still, we were warned it was likely Marcel would be severely disabled – that he would have cerebral palsy, be unable to walk, be fed via a tube to his stomach, have issues with sight and hearing and unable to ever look after himself.”
Kendell stood by the family’s side during this bitter blow, “helping us to figure out what life would look like”.
“In those early days, we were focussed on creating meaningful memories,” Kendell says.
“When Marcel had his first bath, we used the Polaroid camera, an item funded by the Canberra Hospital Foundation, to capture that special moment for his family.”
Because Marcel’s future looked so uncertain, Elise says the memory of his first bath was one the family knew it could keep forever.
Later, when Marcel was able to go home, Kendell and two play therapists visited the family, bringing with them music, paint – and joy.
“We made hand and foot prints with Marcel and his two siblings and sang songs together,” Kendell says.
“Marcel had just been fitted with hearing aids, so the music was even more emotional … there were definitely tears from all of us!”
Now 17 months old, Marcel continues to defy the medical odds with his progress.
Incredibly, apart from mild to moderate hearing loss, this miracle baby “appears to be tracking normally”, according to his delighted mum.
“He’s walking, he’s eating just fine, he’s playful and there are no major issues,” Elise says.
“Marcel’s story is a story of hope!”
On Tuesday, 27 May, the Little family was front and centre to help launch Canberra Hospital Foundation’s Give Me Five for 2025 fundraising appeal – where $5 can make a big difference to the lives of sick children.
The appeal, which supports sick kids and their families through specialty equipment, therapeutic programs and other services, will this year direct its fundraising efforts to Paediatric Palliative Care, Pre-Term Birth, and to mums and bubs in ICU and NICU.
Elise says it’s almost impossible to adequately express what the support of Kendell and the paediatric palliative care team meant to her family during an incredibly difficult and worrying time.
“You never expect to be in this situation … we didn’t see it coming,” she says.
“But we have really felt the impact of coming together as a family and as a community – of a society that knits together. It’s a wonderful feeling to know people care and there are practical things that can be done to support each other in difficult times.
“And I think we really do feel that God is powerful.”
Elise and her family know it’s the little things that can mean a lot – a polaroid camera, paint for prints, a music speaker.
Kendell sees the ripple effects of this in her work every day … in the smiles on the faces of children and their families.
“These aren’t just tools for play therapists,” Kendell says.
“They’re different ways to connect, to create memories, and to bring peace to families during what can be the hardest time of their lives.”
To find out more or to donate, go to Canberra Hospital Foundation.
