Inspired by her late son Brady, who was diagnosed with Battens Disease, Jaclyn Tainsh established this heartfelt initiative to support families caring for children with rare, life-limiting diseases. Brady’s Foundation provides essential Family Support Grants to alleviate the financial burdens these families face, enabling them to afford vital medications, supplements, equipment, and accessible infrastructure that are otherwise not covered. Since its inception in 2021, the Foundation has disbursed over $80,000 in grants, significantly enhancing the quality of life for countless families. As Brady’s Foundation continues to grow and garner recognition in the healthcare community, Jaclyn’s dedication remains unwavering. Our readers can contribute by donating directly to Brady’s Foundation or by spreading awareness about this noble cause. We spoke with Jaclyn to find out more about her.
Describe your charity/non-profit/volunteer work in a few sentences.
Brady’s Foundation provides Family Support Grants to families caring for children diagnosed with rare, life-limiting diseases, to help purchase medications and supplements, equipment and accessible infrastructure not covered by other providers or contract coverages.
What problem does it aim to solve?
Our goal is to relieve some of the financial burden and stress these families face, and help them provide the highest quality of life for their children by having everything they need to care for them.
When did you start/join it?
Brady’s Foundation started actively fundraising in 2021 and we handed out our first Family Support Grant in 2022. Since then we have handed out over $80,000 in family support grants.
What made you want to get involved?
Brady’s Foundation was inspired by my son Brady, who was diagnosed with Battens Disease when he was 4, and passed away from the disease when he was 7. His whole story is on our website. Caring for my son was extremely difficult, and I had a lot of support from my family and community, but I knew that there were families out there in the same situation that did not have the same level of support. That is why Brady’s Foundation was created. We wanted to make sure that these children facing a shortened life were able to have the highest quality of life, and hopefully by relieving the financial burden for their family it would give them the time and headspace to spend as much quality time as they can with their child, while they can.
What was the situation like when you started?
When we started we received 1 application every couple of months.
How has it changed since?
Now that we are more established and becoming more well-known in the healthcare community we receive anywhere from 1 – 4 applications a month, with the requests increasing in price. Most requests range between 6,000 -15,000.
What more needs to be done?
We would like to raise more funds so we can increase the number of Family Support Grants we are able to provide.
How can our readers help?
By donating to Brady’s Foundation directly or sharing our cause with everyone they know.
Do you have any events coming up?
We host an annual fundraiser in August every year.
Where can we follow you?
Website | Instagram | Facebook
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