Telethon’s Giving Celebration reveals 147 beneficiaries making West Australian kids’ lives better
Four years ago, Preeti Raghwami also stood on the same stage and promised her daughter, who she lost to a rare disease, that she would help change one life at a time.
Now, at Telethon’s Celebration of Giving breakfast on Wednesday, she’s making good on that promise, just a few months away from graduating with her medical degree, in the hope of supporting children like her daughter, Ziya.
Little Ziya passed away two months before his second birthday due to a life-limiting disease called mitochondrial disease, which causes many health problems, including seizures.
“In the moments leading up to his death, I made a promise to him that I would help change one life at a time,” Ms. Raghwami said.
“Four years into my course, I’m finishing it at the end of this year and finally fulfilling my promise to it – it’s a really special feeling and what a full circle moment to be able to say I’ve done it.
“For me, every time I have a patient interaction, every time I get into that sensitive area for kids, there he is. I was on the other side of my bed, and now I can be on this side and tell his story.”
If there were no tears in the eyes of the 750-strong crowd at Crown Perth on Wednesday, Ms Raghwami’s eldest daughter Mahi certainly was when she stood up and said she was “very, very proud of my mother.”
“I want to be a scientist when I grow up so I can find the cure for all diseases, not just my sister’s, but I also want to change the life of one person at a time, as my mother always said,” he said.
“I will be a dynamic duo with my mother.”
Ms Raghwami was just one of hundreds of inspiring people at the Giving Celebration, where 147 charities and 297 donations were announced to benefit from the fund.
The record $90.16 million raised at the 2025 Telethon will fund 199 programs, 3044 pieces of equipment, 38 research grants, as well as 60 equipment grants.
Representatives from each of the beneficiaries attended the celebrations alongside dignitaries including Telethon trustee Kerry Stokes AC, Telethon chairman Richard Goyder and Prime Minister Roger Cook.
Mr Stokes said Telethon was “getting better all the time”
“We donate everything we raise. It goes to real people doing real things,” he said.
“It’s a good formula.”
It was the West Australian children in the room who endured more than any child should have, showing what the Telethon was really about.
Young people like George Olsen, who was still wearing a beret when he read his poem at the Telethon last year because he had lost his hair due to chemotherapy.
“The sun is shining, we can’t always be right. Some days are bad and that can be sad. Things may go wrong but the show goes on. We’re great together, Telethon forever,” he read on Telethon.
The 12-year-old was only a week into recovery when he wrote this poem, but he has now been cancer-free for more than six months.
“I had to go through six months, 12 rounds of chemotherapy, and I remember the date in the back of my head – I finished September 16th last year,” George said.
“Your life is going downhill, but when I’m in the hospital the only way you can go is up and when you’re done you feel a warm feeling inside and you think, ‘Okay I did that, I fought cancer.'”
The crowd also heard from 18-year-old Josh Patrick, who, similar to Preeti, was inspired to study medicine after looking after his sister Charlotte.
Charlotte, 12, has many medical conditions, including cerebral palsy, pulmonary hypoplasia, seizure disorder, intellectual disability and nonverbal autism.
Mr Patrick is currently in his first year of medical studies at the University of Western Australia.
“A lot of the things that have supported Charlotte throughout her life have been new technologies and different programs that support people with undiagnosed diseases,” he said.
“Getting into research on young people with these conditions is really what I want to do in my future.”
It wouldn’t be a Giving Celebration without hearing from Little Telethon Stars Paige McIllree, Xavier Summers, Jordan Blair and Izzy Miller.
Being on stage was a very special moment for Izzy, who celebrated being cancer free by ringing the bell at Perth Children’s Hospital last week.
“I almost cried when I rang the bell,” the five-year-old said.
Telethon’s fun moments stay in the minds of West Australians, and Jordan’s signing of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody alongside Rob ‘Millsy’ Mills was one of those times.
Audiences were lucky enough to hear another rendition of Jordan singing the song alongside the Aquinas College choir, to a standing ovation from the large crowd.
Emily Barlow was awarded the Kindness Award for her dedication to baking cookies to raise funds for the annual Telethon.
The 13-year-old boy, who suffers from bilateral spastic diplegic cerebral palsy, raised $15,000 for the Telethon through cake sales.
She even baked more than 700 cookies for event attendees.
Mr Goyder said the Telethon’s impact was told through parents and families, not numbers.
“I woke up this morning and thought this was one of the best days of the year and I got out of bed very early this morning full of life and strength because of what today means to the WA community,” he said.
“As I stand here on behalf of the Telethon board of trustees and look around the room, I am reminded of the communities built by people who care.
“There are people in this room who understand that what we do for one child in a family has more impact than we realize.”
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister said the Charity Celebration was “where the rubber really hits the road”.
“You see 147 organizations getting the money that everyone worked so hard to raise,” he said.
“It doesn’t matter where I travel, everywhere in this state you will always encounter a clinician, a doctor, a nurse, an allied health professional who will say ‘the only reason we’re doing this is because of Telethon,’ and that’s a great thing for our State.”
This year’s fundraising weekend is at the RAC Arena on 17 and 18 October.
The Telethon has raised more than $770 million since its inception in 1968.
