VANCOUVER, BC – Gabby Friedman wants to make a difference. For BC Children’s Hospital, its patients and families, and in her words, “the future generations of sick children” in this province.
Gabby, this year’s Jeans Day Champion Child, used to be one of those children.
The 15-year-old spent the first few years of her life in and out of the hospital, undergoing surgeries, suffering from seizures, and dealing with other complications as they arose. Eventually, it was determined that her major organs were starting to shut down and she was diagnosed with Portal Vein Thrombosis and Portal Hypertension, a rare condition caused by a clot in the portal vein that left her in constant danger of severe internal bleeding.