Alamanda College in Point Cook hosted a dress-up day for a special cause on Friday.
The school held a fundraising event for Superhero Day, which was started by young sisters Caat and Eef after their little brother Boet died at 8.5 months old.
Boet was born prematurely and spent 255 days in hospital.
Alamanda raised more than $1600 on Superhero Day, which supports the not-for-profit organisation ByBoet, which was established by Boet’s family including his parents Marijn Mees and Joris Steeman, to fund research and contribute medical equipment and other items to Neonatal Intensive Care Units.
Alamanda’s community liaison Erik Stewart said that Caat was a former pupil of the college, while Mr Steeman had served on the school’s council.
College prep teacher Rachel Wilson was also one of Boet’s neonatal nurses.
Mr Stewart said: “As a community, we are very excited to show our appreciation and gratitude towards the real heroes in Boet’s story, the doctors and nurses who supported him and his family through their situation as well as acknowledging the strength and courage shown by Boet.”
He said that Alamanda was also dedicating its 2021 Christmas Carols event “to the wonderful staff” at Werribee Mercy Hospital by holding a parent raffle and crowdsourcing.
“Information about how people can get involved in this is on our school Instagram page, @alamanda.college,” Mr Stewart said.
He said Alamanda College has a focus on developing globally-minded students, who display empathy and are committed to being actively involved in their community.
“We aim to create an environment where students are encouraged to think globally and act locally,” he added.
By Alesha Capone
