Family want books in hospital in daughter's memory

Sue and Katie O'Leary Hall say books have always been an "essential part" of their family life

The parents of a little girl who died from complications following a rare heart defect are trying to create a library of e-books for hospitalised children.

Rose O'Leary Hall passed away aged four in September 2023 after she caught an infection following surgery at Leeds General Infirmary.

Rose was born with an interrupted aortic arch, which affects around one in 50,000 babies and stops blood flowing through the body, and as a result spent much of her life in hospital.

Now her parents Katie and Sue, who whiled away many hours with Rose in intensive care by reading to her, are fundraising to set up an electronic library of reading material for sick children and their families.

Katie and Sue said Rose loved reading to her dolls and being read stories by her older brother Will, who is now aged nine.

The couple, from north Leeds, said creating the e-library would help keep their daughter's memory alive. They plan to name it 'Rose's Library'.

They described her as a "little firecracker" who was full of "mischief".

Rose was an avid reader from an early age, her parents say

Sue, 48, said: "There is something very special about being taken somewhere else when you read a story.

"When you have a child in hospital the days are enormously long and as parents you're either bored to tears or terrified.

"We’d often be standing at her hospital bed for 10 to 12 hours a day.

"Having the familiarity of a story that you recognise from home is really valuable because it creates an anchor of 'Oh yeah, we know this'. It creates a nugget of a safety net."

Although books form an "essential part" of the family's life, Katie and Sue said they hoped their project would help all children, including those who have grown up without reading as a habit.

Rose's parents say the books will help all families with a sick child in hospital

Donations for their venture have now topped £1,000.

English teacher Katie, 40, said: "Other than watching doctors and nurses coming and going and attending to your child, there’s not a framework for you in hospital.

"As a parent in that situation you’re thrown into the same pot of trauma, when you’re in a maelstrom of terror, fear, worry and uncertainty and it’s not always obvious what to do and how to fill that time."

The family has raised more than £1,000 for the campaign so far

The O'Leary Halls said they had initially intended to create a physical book collection, but given infection control issues in hospitals settled on the idea of it being electronic, with children able to access material through a smart device.

They also hope to eventually have audiobooks alongside the collection so that parents, children and siblings can listen to stories together.

Sue added: "Rose hurtled into the world like a little meteor. She was fantastic fun.

"It’s really tough, but we have to somehow, if it’s ever possible, do her justice. That’s a big part of why we’re doing this."

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