Herbie Fund

About Citytv Herbie Day

In February 1979, seven-month-old Herbie Quinones of Brooklyn, New York, came to Toronto because he was born with a rare birth defect that made it hard for him to breathe while being fed. He needed an operation that was developed at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids). After reading about Herbie in local newspapers, a number of people generously donated money to cover his hospital costs. Herbie received his lifesaving operation in Toronto and returned to Brooklyn a much happier and healthier little boy. Paul Godfrey (then chair of Metropolitan Toronto) and his wife Gina, established the Herbie Fund in response to the needs of Herbie and children like him. They felt strongly that every child should have access to medical care, no matter where they lived or how much money they had.

Gord Martineau and Citytv wanted to help the Herbie Fund reach many more children requiring medical assistance; subsequently, Citytv Herbie Day was born out of their desire to help these kids in need. On June 21, 2006, under a sunny sky, the first annual Citytv Herbie Day was held on the front lawn of The Hospital for Sick Children. Citytv broadcast on-location throughout the day in order to draw attention to the Herbie Fund, and to encourage our community to make donations in support of this fund.

Thanks to the effort of Gord and Citytv, Citytv Herbie Day was an incredible success raising over $250,000 over the past two years. Citytv is continuing their commitment to the Herbie Fund with the third annual Citytv Herbie Day on June 6th, 2008.

Please join in the fun of Citytv Herbie Day on June 6th, 2008 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on the front lawn of SickKids on University Ave. Indulge in an international breakfast and enjoy the authentic tastes of China, India and the Philippines for $5 starting at 7 a.m. Treat yourself to a BBQ lunch of South St. Burgers Co. hamburgers, along with drinks and fruit skewers for $6 starting at noon, while listening to the live entertainment. You can do all this while fundraising to help bring children from around the world to SickKids for life-changing treatments.

Tune into CityNews at 6, June 2nd through 6th, and follow Gord’s amazing journey to Botswana and Trinidad as he documents the journey of two special children in need of life-saving and life-altering surgery to SickKids.

You can make a donation on Gord's personal Citytv Herbie Day page and help Gord support the Herbie Fund.

Britney Herbie Patient from Trinidad and Tobago.

Shatho Arriving from Botswan

Shatho Herbie Patient from Botswana.