Welcome to Episode 69 of our podcast, Courageous Conversations, hosted by Leanne Pilkington.
In this episode, our guest is Louise Mahoney, Chief Executive Officer and ‘Dream Maker’ of Dreams2Live4. She talks about her sister, Annie, the founder of Dreams2Live4 and her battle with metastatic cancer, how Louise carries on her legacy through her work at Dreams2Live4, the kinds of dreams and experiences they provide to cancer patients, how the charity has grown over the years, the challenges they face and what’s to come.
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00:30 – About Dreams2Live4 and how it was founded by Louise’s sister, Annie who has had metastatic cancer
01:25 – Service 180 hospitals Australia-wide and became a national charity in 2015.
02:10 – How providing ‘dreams’ to adults works at Dreams2Live4, and how diverse they can be
03:15 – An example scenario that happened recently and the process involved; a lady given only 2 weeks to live who wanted a rose garden.
05:00 – It’s not just about holidays, but also creative projects like wanting to write a children’s book or hearing their children sing in a recording studio
07:40 – How Dreams2Live4 receives support and funding for its cause
09:00 – Undertaking ‘dreams’ to change the tone and direction of daily conversation when someone is gravely ill in the family
11:00 – How Louise remains resilient in times of grief by holding onto the times of joy and the feedback/thanks they receive
12:00 – How the Dreams2Live4 charity has grown over the years; reflecting on having Board members
13:20 – What Louise did before she worked at Dreams2Live4; working as a nurse and transferring this knowledge to her current role
15:00 – What’s next for Dreams2Live4 and how COVID affected the charity
16:30 – Find out how you can support Dreams2Live4 by contacting Louise at louise@dreams2live4.org.au
17:00 – Louise is on the look out for holiday homes or providers of places to stay (especially the Gold Coast) – contact her if you can assist