When organisers of the inaugural Lifecycle event raised last year $130,000 towards purpose-built accommodation for cancer patients receiving treatment at the Canberra Hospital, they were pretty chuffed.
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But they knew it was a long-term project that could take another decade to reach fruition.
Enter the John James Foundation with a donation of almost $3 million and the dream has come a lot closer to reality.
Virtually overnight, the project has gone from something that might happen eventually, to one that is likely to be completed within two years.
Lifecycle organiser Mark Blake, who started the fundraising 48-hour bike ride around Lake Burley Griffin with friend and cancer survivor Carl Sueli, said the commitment from the John James Foundation had been a game-changer.
"We were absolutely overwhelmed," he said. "We were prepared for the slog but it still would have taken a lot of years to get there."
Land has been identified in Garran and negotiations are underway with the ACT Government for its acquisition, with planning approvals also to be sought.
The plan is to build six units of one to three bedrooms in a short-term residential facility for patients undergoing treatment at the Canberra Hospital for leukaemia and other blood cancers. The units would also be used by the families of the patients from regional areas with gardens, communal areas and a playground also planned.
The ACT Branch of the Leukaemia Foundation will manage the facility, which also include meeting rooms and offices for its services.
It will be a step up from the four-bedroom house the Leukaemia Foundation currently rents in Isaacs, where two families are routinely asked to share the space. There is also a waiting list to use it.
The new facility will be known as John James Village, with the John James Foundation pledging $2.9 million towards its capital costs.
But John James Foundation chief executive officer Phil Greenwood said it was committed to building a quality facility and the amount pledged could increase.
The foundation used to run the John James Hospital in Deakin before the facility was sold to Calvary Private Healthcare Canberra in 2006. The foundation continues to own all the hospital land and buildings and the income it generates from the lease of the buildings is channelled into charitable concerns.
The John James Village will be the largest single project tackled by the foundation, which was keen to make a significant contribution to the community and had been a sponsor of LifeCycle last year.
"This is exactly the project we were looking for," Mr Greenwood said.
Leukaemia Foundation ACT fundraising manager Susan Fisher said having a purpose-built facility would help ease the concerns of patients from around the region, but also other parts of Canberra, who needed to be close to the hospital for regular treatment or needed their families to be accommodated during their treatment.
There were limits on the Isaacs house, including the fact patients might not be able to use the kitchen at the same time for risk of infection. The new facility would put patients and their families in their own units.
"We're incredibly appreciative," she said. "It's just fantastic to have such support from the community."
Mr Sueli, 35, helped start LifeCycle after surviving three bouts of aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Then living in Canberra, he and his partner Ali Murray had access to a Leukaemia Foundation unit in Sydney while he was receiving treatment at Westmead Hospital for four months in 2009.
"It was great peace of mind to know Ali could pop across the road and be in a safe place," he said.
LifeCycle will continue to raise money for the ongoing costs of the Leukaemia Foundation, with this year's event aiming to raise $150,000.
This year's event is from 6pm on October 18 to 6pm on October 20 with participants able to cycle for as little or as long as they like. To register visit: http://www.life-cycle.org.au/
