About
Welcome to Milkshakes for Marleigh Community
Where those who have needed blood thank their donors
and encourage new ones
Here you will find extraordinary stories of survival thanks to Australian blood donors. If you have ever been a donor you can wonder you saved, improved or longed the life of the people who feature in the stories we tell across the Milkshakes for Marleigh platforms
Kate Fisher is the Founder of Milkshakes for Marleigh and Australia’s primary blood donation advocate. She she is on a mission to end persistent critical blood shortages in Australia and around the world.
Lives saved in 2024
Whole Blood Donors
Plasma Donors
Platelets Donors
Stream the podcast from every major platform
Meet your host
Kate Fisher
Best selling author and award winning postcast host
Kate is the host and producer of The Milkshakes for Marleigh Podcast where she tells the survival stories of blood product recipients. This is her creative solution to the social problem that not enough people donate blood. Only 1 in 30 Australians donate blood and yet 1 in 3 will need it in their lifetime. Kate is on a mission to change that, while thanking as many blood donors as she can along the way. You can find the Milkshakes for Marleigh podcast on your favourite podcast platform.
Kate is a mother at the helm of a family with additional needs. Kate has four children, three of them are living and like her, they have various complex medical conditions, physical and neurodevelopmental disabilities. She is helplessly in love with her husband Geoff and adores navigating their crazy, challenging, joy filled life together.
Kate was initially inspired by her daughter Marleigh who became unwell at the age of three and was eventually diagnosed with Seronegative Paediatric Autoimmune Encephalitis. This is a life-threatening condition with no cure, however treatment is possible with Intravenous Immunoglobulin Infusions (IVIG) made from donated human plasma. For Marleigh this treatment is lifesaving during the acute phases of her illness and life preserving for every infusion in between. Marleigh will be dependent on blood donors for life. She is now eight-years-old and has blown out five bonus set of birthday candles thanks to Australian blood donors. Kate encourages people to donate blood for the Milkshakes for Marleigh Lifeblood team so she can track the number of donations made by people inspired by Marleigh’s incredible story of survival.
Please book your donation here today! Those outside Australia can share their stories and blood donations via the Milkshakes for Marleigh social media channels.
Available in bookstores June 2024
Extraordinary tales of survival
thanks to Australian blood donors
In 2024, Kate published her first book called Milkshakes for Marleigh which tells extraordinary tales of survival thanks to Australian blood donors. Like the podcast, the concept of the book is that if you have ever been a blood donor, you can read a story in the book and wonder if you were the blood donor who saved their life?
It is her most recent tool in her blood donation advocacy and will be available in all good bookstores in June 2024.
Donate Blood Today
Shakes for Jakes
Lifeblood subteam for Kate’s Brother
Since founding Milkshakes for Marleigh in 2021, Kate’s brother Jake has also become a regular whole blood, platelet and plasma recipient as he undergoes treatment for Lymphoma. This has included many rounds of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. Jake is currently recovering on his farm near Coffs Harbour in New South Wales, spending days with his wife Suzanne and two beautiful little girls Evie and Abbigail spending days swimming in their pool, chasing chooks and riding their ponies all thanks to having his life saved and prolonged by Australian blood donors. His family now encourages people to donate blood for the Lifeblood Team: #ShakesforJake is a subteam of The Milkshakes for Marleigh Lifeblood Team.
What others say
Testimonials
milkshakes_for_marleigh
💗🦓 Milkshakes for Marleigh podcast🦓💗
💗🦓 Season Four : Australian Athletes 🦓💗
EPISODE ONE: @brendenhall93
Welcome to the new season of The @milkshakes_for_marleigh Podcast where we will be revisiting some old episodes with Aussie athletes who have joined us on the pod before and meeting some new ones along the way! They will all share the unique bond of having received blood donated by their fellow Aussies!
In Ep.1, I revisit my chat with @ausparalympics flag bearer for the @paralympics Paris 2024, Brenden Hall, OAM.
In this snapshot of his 2022 interview on the M4M pod, he reflects on his introduction to fatherhood, his disappointment with @tokyo2020 & what he hopes the legacy of his swimming career would be.
Little did he know that 3 years later he’d be strapping on the goggles for his 5th @paralympics, leading the @ausparalympics team out as the flag bearer at the Paralympic opening ceremony alongside @madison.____ and expecting another baby!!!!
All of these things have been made possible by the Australian blood donors who saved Brenden’s life when he was 6 years old and suffered complications from Chicken Pox that took much of his hearing and his right leg.
We love having fellow Sunny Coaster, Brenden as part of the #MilkshakesforMarleigh community and can’t wait to see him make a splash in Paris!
Full episode is available by scrolling back to Season One of milkshakes_for_marleigh in your podcast feed.
(Be gentle with the feedback - it’s certainly been a lesson in how much my interview techniques and sound quality have improved over the years!!!! 🦓💗)
#brenden #brendenhall #keepingupwithm4mmembers #paraathlete #paralympics #paralympian #swimmer #goldmedalist #paralympicgoldmedalist #ausparalympicteam #greenandgold #aussieaussieaussie #thanksblooddonors #blooddonorssavelives @kmdbooks @wattlenest @brittdaniec @beingsportish #newpodcastalert #newpodcastseason #newpodcastepisode #australianathlete #survivalstory #amputee #deaf #sunshinecoast #sunnycoastlocals #sunshinecoastqld
Watch you podcast feeds….. a NEW BONUS SEASON of The @milkshakes_for_marleigh Podcast is dropping very, very soon!!!!
There are 460 Aussie athletes in @paris2024 preparing to represent @ausolympicteam and approximately 160 para-athletes are heading to France in August 2024 for the @paralympics!
1 in 3 Aussies will need blood in their lifetime, statistically at least 207 of these athletes will too!
If you have ever been a blood donor, you can listen to this seasons podcast episodes and wonder if you were the one who saved, preserved or improved the quality of life for one of our Aussie athletes!
I will be revisiting episodes I recorded with athletes in the first 3 seasons and resharing them in snapshot versions with some updates! We will also meet some new athletes in full length episodes along the way!
Make sure you are following Milkshakes for Marleigh in your podcast feeds and please suggest/tag any guests you would like to hear from in the comments below!
#newpodcastseason #comingsoon #milkshakesformarleigh #podcast #podcastersofinstagram #aussiestories #countdowntoparis #paris2024 #olympics #paralympics #watchchthisspace
2 days of @ausmumpreneur interviews - DONE!
Awards are such a wonderful way to recognise your own achievements and reflect on all the hard works we put in and the impact it has. I’m so proud of what I am achieving with @milkshakes_for_marleigh 💗🦓💗🦓
It’s all in the hands of the judges now and given the incredible calibre of the finalists I’m up against Im heading to Melbourne #Ausmum24 with no expectations but with arms wide open to hug the other incredible women in the Ausmum community and a thirst for learning at the conference.
A reminder to PLEASE VOTE for Milkshakes for Marleigh to win the AusMumpreneur People’s Choice Award for Making a Difference.
(Link in bio)
#ausmum #ausmumpreneur #finalist #podcastoftheyear #authoroftheyear #nonprofitoftheyear #womanchangingtheworld #femalefounder #interview #podcasthost #bestsellingauthor #milkshakesformarleigh #community #femaleleadership #marleigh @thewomenchangingtheworld @kmdbooks
Are you looking to book a speaker for your next event?
Please head to the Milkshakes for Marleigh website for more information.
Book and speaker packages are a available now!
#speaker #australianspeaker #australianstoryteller #bookaspeaker #keynote #internationalspeaker #changemaker #milkshakesformarleigh #katefisher #limitedavailability #book #podcast #authorsofinstagram #bestsellingauthor
Where have you spotted the @milkshakes_for_marleigh pink zebra this week?
#sendmeaselfie of where you are reading the Milkshakes for Marleigh book!
#milkshakesformarleigh #book #bookish #bookstagram #booklover #bookphotography #spottedinthewild #star #australian #australianstories #blooddonors #survivalstories #pink #pinkzebra #kmdauthor @kmdbooks @qbdbooks #qbd #readingonsundays
