Ruby's YouTube wish a hit

Ruby, aged 14, has drawn ever since she could hold a pencil. Thanks to generous donors and supporters like you she got to meet and spend time with her favourite YouTube illustrators.

Background

Meet Ruby

For wish mum Karen, it was not months, weeks or even days before alarm bells starting ringing about her baby Ruby. It was hours.

About 30 hours after Ruby was born she was rushed to hospital after her stomach “started swelling up like a balloon”.

Ruby went into theatre to unblock her bowel and following the procedure Karen was told Ruby had cystic fibrosis.

Ruby stayed in hospital for almost six weeks as doctors tried to get her bowel functioning properly.

“We spent the first 12 months in and out of hospital,” Karen said. “We had 11 admissions, 77 nights admitted and a second round of bowel surgery.

“And then, she came home from all of that excitement just before her first birthday. And then did pretty well for a few years.”

The wish

The little girl who loved to draw

Now 14, Ruby had further surgery in 2019, with a gastrostomy button or tube inserted to ensure she gets adequate food and her weight is healthy.

Ruby has used all her time in hospital to good effect – it’s been an opportunity for her to do her favourite thing: draw.

“Rube’s drawn since she could pick up a pencil, whether that be on a wall or a piece of furniture or whatever she could find,” mum Karen said.

Ruby had drawn inspiration from some YouTube artists/animators so when asked what she wished for it was easy: to meet three of her favourites at VidCon, the multi-genre online video tech conference in Melbourne.

Wish day

Drawing inspiration from YouTubers

Ruby wasn’t certain she would meet let alone get much time with her favourite YouTubers James, Jayden and Jazza.

But not only did she get to meet them, she got their undivided attention for about two hours.

“The organisers of VidCon kept coming in saying ‘Guys you’ve got to go on stage, you’ve got to go on stage soon’ and they’re like ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah we’ll get there’,” Karen said.

“So they had two hours of sitting around with Ruby just joking and playing and drawing and making up stories. She made them all shirts.”

Wish effect

An art career beckons

Ruby’s confidence and self-belief has skyrocketed since her wish. She now has new-found confidence and self-belief.

“They (the YouTubers) really gave her some good tips about things and making sure she valued her art. Which has really kept her motivated to do that,” Karen said.

“Since the Wish she’s set up her own space for filming for YouTube.”