Highland family fundraising in baby's memory will offer boost to Raigmore Hospital
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
GRIEVING parents are raising money for Raigmore Hospital after suffering the heartbreaking loss of a son.
Baby Cameron, who was the second of twin boys, died in mother Zoe Souter’s arms shortly after he was born on January 28.
Now, the 29-year-old is spearheading a fundraising drive in Cameron’s honour, along with husband Kevin (30), to help invest in a family room for the hospital’s Ward 10.
Mrs Souter, a hospital receptionist, said: “We found out that we were expecting twins back in August.
“It came as a shock to the system at first – but we were so looking forward to meeting our boys. But as early as our 12-week scan, we knew there were health problems for one of the boys, who we called Cameron.
“We had many appointments at Raigmore and in Glasgow and with each appointment the news was a little bit worse for Cameron.”
Mrs Souter explained that, closer to her due date, hospital staff also began to have fears for Cameron’s twin brother, Ruaridh, so induced the labour earlier than had been planned.
“It all came as a bit of a rush in the end,” she said.
“We understood the likely outcome of things with Cameron, but we never stopped believing that there was hope.
“But when staff began to worry about his twin, Ruairidh, and his possible low birth weight, it was all very urgent.
“We didn’t know how long Cameron would be with us, so I did not want to have to be recovering from a caesarean section.”
Ruairidh weighed 5lb 7oz, and 25 minutes later, Cameron arrived weighing only 3lb 2oz.
Mrs Souter said: “Cameron was delivered into my arms and then his cord was cut. He then passed away. He was perfect. He and his brother were both with us.”
Cameron had problems with his heart, lungs and kidneys. On his death certificate, the doctor said he was one minute old.
Mrs Souter, from Culduthel, described the next three days as a rollercoaster of emotions.
“On one hand we had our beautiful boy Ruairidh, while we were dealing with the death of his brother. The staff on the ward were outstanding.
“We got to spend time together as a family. Our daughter Emily, who is only five, knew we were expecting twins, so she got to spend time with both the babies, and our families were able to come onto the ward to meet the boys.
“Cameron stayed with us on Ward 10 for two days in a cuddle cot. Without the cuddle cot we would never have been able to have this extra time with him.”
Investment in a redesign of Ward 10 is being met by charity SIMBA, which has launched a fundraiser for £85,000 to upgrade six family rooms at the hospital.
“We cannot praise Ward 10 and the staff there enough for everything they did to support us,” Mrs Souter added. “By starting this fundraiser we would love to give back to help its plans to redesign the ward.”
To donate, visit https://bit.ly/3b8U7Jl
