THE Crystal Lee Foundation has opened a new opportunity shop at 75 Thompson Street, Hamilton.

Founded in 2019, the registered charity started out with a store in Koroit and was established to offer family support services for young people with cancer and their families.

The foundation exists to fill what was believed to be a gap in regional areas for people from birth to 24 years of age affected by an oncology diagnosis.

Crystal Johnson was diagnosed with cancer as a 16-year-old who sadly lost her battle in 2019 at the age of 19.

Crystal’s mother, Jo Sinclair, was motivated by the experience of having a child diagnosed with the dreaded disease and then her devastating loss when she passed away.

“I can relate firsthand to the devastation of the loss of a child, having the lived experience,” Ms Sinclair said.

Through the Crystal Lee foundation, endorsed for Deductible Gift Recipient purposes, she said she wanted to especially help educate the community on the needs of teenagers in the health system which are different from the needs of young children and the older population.

“We had a dreadful time with poor Crystal,” she said.

“We were probably down in Melbourne for a year and a half.

“What we noticed was that when you’re down in Melbourne you have all the supports around you but the minute you come back home, to a regional or rural area, all the services just drop off.

“Crystal’s dream was, before she died, she wanted to have a foundation to help other young people who have a cancer diagnosis.

“We support from birth - 24 in the south west of Victoria - we support their families as well.”

Ms Sinclair is the manager of the Crystal Lee Foundation Op Shop in Koroit, and said since opening five years ago, they have been working to raise awareness in the community about the need.

“Prior to Crystal’s diagnosis I spent many years working in the welfare sector and in the field of relationship counselling,” she said.

“(The Crystal Lee Foundation Op Shop in Koroit) brings care and understanding to others facing an uncertain future.

“I am proud of the work we do (at the Foundation) and feel honoured to be helping others.”

Ms Sinclair said they fund a bereavement counsellor that works across most of the south west district.

“He’s (Michael) often in Hamilton,” she said.

“Michael supports obviously people in south west Victoria and that’s not age limited - you can self-refer - you don’t need any mental health plans or anything like that - it’s just a phone call.

“Probably 45 per cent of our referral base for Michael is through the Koroit shop.”

Ms Sinclair said she was very excited to expand on their enterprise in Koroit and bring the store to Hamilton.

“It’s more than an op shop - it’s like a little hub - it’s really lovely.

“We get a lot of people from Hamilton in our Koroit store and donating.

“People tell you their stories and talk - it’s a warm environment - that’s what we’ve created in Koroit - so we wanted to create that in Hamilton.

“Because of the special work we do - I wanted it to be a really nice shop and really respect the people we support.

“Some people can’t afford to go shopping in mainstream shops and I wanted them to feel nice too.

“That was my vision.”

Ms Sinclair said the foundation would be looking for volunteers for the Hamilton store plus advertising in the near future for a store manager.

The Hamilton store will open today at 10am and thereafter from Tuesdays to Fridays, 10am-3pm and from 10am-2pm on Saturdays.