A bereaved dad from Pelsall has scored a fundraising goal after organising and playing in a charity football tournament and raising over £6,500 for Birmingham Children’s Hospital Charity, in memory of his daughter and as thanks for her care. 

Chris Bryan, a team leader in the events industry, called upon family, friends, and friends of friends to from 10 football teams of seven players, to take part in a tournament at Goals Black Country, in honour of his daughter Isla, who sadly passed away at just 10-days-old. 

Chris and his wife Hayley were over the moon when they found out they were expecting a baby girl, and that their then two-year-old son, Oliver, was going to become a big brother. However, their joy was soon tinged with worry, after a scan showed that their little girl would be born with a heart defect called coarctation of the aorta, which meant one of the arteries in her heart was narrower than it should be, stopping blood from flowing as freely as it should. 

The couple were devastated to learn that their baby would need open-heart surgery as soon as she was born and that Chris probably wouldn’t get to hold his little girl until after her operation but a visit to Birmingham Children’s Hospital to see where she would be treated and meet their consultant, helped to ease their worry. 

After an otherwise straightforward pregnancy, Isla was born at Birmingham Women’s Hospital and as soon as she arrived, she was whisked off for specialist care in the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Isla was given medication to keep the ductus arteriosus, a small vessel in the heart which usually closes after birth, open, to keep blood flowing around her heart until she could have her surgery. 

At six-days-old, Isla was transferred to the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit at Birmingham Children’s Hospital and after an examination by her consultant, Chris and Hayley were elated to learn that her heart appeared to be functioning beyond their expectations and that she wouldn’t need the operation. Isla was taken off her medication and proud dad, Chris, was able to hold his little girl for the first time, bathe her, and even feed her. 

Isla’s consultants were pleased with her progress and agreed to transfer her back to Birmingham Women’s Hospital until she was strong enough to go home. Sadly though, that night, after Chris and Hayley had wished Isla good night, and driven home from the hospital, they received a call they’ll never forget - Isla’s temperature had spiked. Chris and Hayley rushed back to the hospital but Isla suffered a stroke and passed away that night. 

Chris and Hayley’s world had shattered into a million pieces but after raising over £1,000 for the two hospitals at Isla’s funeral and taking part in a charity football match organised by a friend, they knew they wanted to fundraise more to say thank you. 

Over 70 players came together on the day of the match, forming teams with names relating to the hospital and the vibrant artwork on display in its corridors, including the windows with illustrations from Roald Dahl books. Every team had its own strip, sporting the charity’s logo and a flamingo, in homage to the flamingo teddy that stayed by Isla’s side. 

Chris said: “Birmingham Children’s Hospital is such an incredible place and we can’t thank the brilliant PICU team enough for everything they did for us. We felt so involved with Isla’s care, everything was explained to us so well and we got to interact with our baby in a way we didn’t think was going to be possible, so our fundraising is our way of saying thank you.

“Our football tournament was more successful than we could have imagined and we’re so grateful to everyone involved for helping us raise so much for the charity. When we lost Isla, we felt like it was the end, but I’d like to tell anyone going through the same that you will come out the other side. We’ve had two more children, Louie who is three and Darcie who is one, and Isla plays such a big part in their lives.”

Miranda Williams, Director of Public Fundraising at Birmingham Women’s and Children’s Hospital Charity, said: “Chris and Hayley faced any parent’s worst nightmare but we’re so glad our wonderful teams were able to make the time they had with Isla so special, and that the care they received inspired them to fundraise for us in Isla’s memory.  

“Chris’ football tournament raised an incredible amount for us and those funds will help us to continue supporting the hard work of our colleagues as they go above and beyond for patients and their families.”