August 23, 2016

82416periwinklegatorade640In her almost 22 years with Texas Children’s Hospital, Linda Baker, assistant director of pharmacy at Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus, has always been involved with Camp Periwinkle, a week-long summer camp for children with cancer and their siblings.

Last year Baker wanted to adopt a cabin at the camp, but they were all taken so she asked camp organizers what else they needed. Gatorade!, they enthusiastically replied. Baker donated 10 cases of the drink and the camp still needed more, which gave Baker the idea to organize a campus-wide contribution this year, challenging her West Campus employees to exceed last year’s donation. They did just that, giving 1,504 bottles or 19,193 ounces of Gatorade to the Periwinkle Foundation.

“I am so proud and happy to say that the employees of West Campus came through as we always do,” Baker said. “We should all be very proud that our contribution helped keep these kids hydrated during their summer camp.”

Patients, families and staff walking along The Auxiliary Bridge last week received a sweet serenade from members of the Taiwan Vox Choir.

Comprised of roughly 70 choral members ages 9 through 14, all of the singers are from aboriginal tribes in the Jade Mountain area of Taiwan. The talented young vocalists come from remote areas of the country where resources are scarce and poverty is common. Despite these challenges, the young performers maintain a tireless work-ethic to develop their clear and harmonious sound.

The choir shared their sound with Texas Children’s Hospital and other hospitals in the Texas Medical Center on August 10.

Click here to learn more about the choir and to hear them perform.

82416wclibrarydonation640The Katy-West Houston Pi Beta Phi alumnae group recently presented $4,800 to Texas Children’s Hospital West Campus. These funds will go toward the West Campus’ library, which offers books, board games, puzzles and movies for patients and their families to enjoy. The library also houses medical and parenting resources, paperback fiction, magazines, foreign language books, computers and a fax machine.

Texas Children’s has enjoyed a long-standing relationship with Pi Beta Phi alumnae and shares a mutual commitment to literacy and education. The first Pi Beta Phi Patient/Family Library opened in 1985 at Texas Children’s Hospital, and in 2011, the Pi Beta Phi Patient/Family Library opened at the West Campus.

Currently, there are more than 140 Pi Beta Phi Book Nooks located at Texas Children’s medical center campus, the West Campus, Texas Children’s Health Centers, Texas Children’s Urgent Care facilities, the Centers for Children and Women and in all the Texas Children’s Pediatrics practices throughout the Houston area.

After the check presentation, Pi Beta Phi alumnae members received a tour of the West Campus, which included visits to the library, radiology department and sports medicine area. As the Greater-Houston’s first suburban hospital designed exclusively for children, the West Campus upholds Texas Children’s mission of providing the highest-quality health care for children, coupled with a location that’s convenient and accessible for area families.

August 16, 2016

81716powersoccer640City youth who use power wheelchairs will participate on the Houston Fireball’s power soccer team in the third soccer match between a Professional League Soccer team and a Power Chair team. Eighty percent of the Houston Fireball team is made up of Texas Children’s patients.

The MLS Houston Dynamo and the NWSL Dash teams face off against Houston’s only power soccer team from 6:30 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, August 16, at Fonde Recreation Center, 110 Sabine Street in Houston.

The event will be an excellent opportunity to observe young athletes with motor disabilities showcase their talents while watching a leading Houston sports team play soccer in power chairs with the Fireball’s team. Dr. Tim Lotze, director of the Muscular Dystrophy Clinic, along with other Texas Children’s physicians and staff representing three to four service lines will be watching from the stands as they cheer their team on.

Power soccer is the fastest-growing sport developed specifically for power wheelchair users that allow them to unleash their competitive spirit, develop sportsmanship and team-building skills. The World Cup will be played in US 2017.

Click video to see the Fireball/Dynamos in action. Pump Up for the great power soccer clash!

The event includes Mascot Diesel, DeeJay. Senegal, EMCEE Sarah Pepper (95.7), and single item auction where highest bidder plays on the Dynamo team the last 15 minutes in a power soccer chair. Concessions available.

Admission is FREE. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Autographs will be available after the match.

If you are interested in playing power soccer, contact Diane Murrell at ext. 2-1058 or go to the Fireballs web site at www.houstonfireballs.com

On August 6, more than 400 patient families traveled from all over the country for the 2016 Texas Children’s Newborn Center family reunion. The reunion celebrated former patients who graduated from the Newborn Center in 2015 after spending 21 days or more in our neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

The reunion was held at Texas Children’s Pavilion for Women where parents shared stories of hope and triumph with other NICU families and reconnected with the nurses and doctors who delivered life-saving care to their critically ill babies.

“The families were so grateful to be able to come back and share the great progress their babies have made,” said Judy Swanson, vice president of nursing for the Newborn Center. “It gave them the opportunity to visit with the employees, physicians and other families that they spent so much time with while in the NICU. It was heartwarming to see them making so much progress.”

Highlights from the reunion included remarks from Swanson and Texas Children’s Chief of Neonatology Dr. Gautham Suresh, Newborn Center Nursing Director Heather Cherry, guest speakers Katy Haynes and Desiree Collins-Bradley, and blessings from Texas Children’s chaplain Kirsten Springmeyer.

The NICU reunion also offered exciting entertainment for the children including coloring, face painting, inflatable pony races, appearances from Minnie Mouse and SpongeBob SquarePants, and the guests enjoyed a good old-fashioned Texas barbecue.

81016Play60640Does your child’s school need new equipment for physical education, sports or after-school programs? Maybe help refurbishing a track or building a trail? If so, let them know they can apply to receive a PLAY 60 grant from Texas Children’s Hospital and the Houston Texans. In honor of Super Bowl 51, these grants have been super-sized to $50,000 so we can help more schools get the equipment they need to get students moving. The deadline to apply is Friday, September 9.

What is PLAY 60?

PLAY 60 is the NFL’s campaign to encourage kids to be active for 60 minutes a day in order to help reverse the trend of childhood obesity. To ensure that our schools have the right tools to integrate healthy activity into the school day, the Houston Texans and Texas Children’s Hospital are proud to award PLAY 60 grants to Houston-area schools in need of additional funding. These grants are designed to help schools with equipment for P.E., sports, or after-school programs, field, gymnasium or playground refurbishments, activity trails, interactive fitness technology installations and other projects that will get kids moving.

PLAY 60 Grant Requirements:

The PLAY 60 grant opportunity is open to schools located in the Greater Houston Area including public, private and charter schools. Each school can submit a formal funding request for up to $10,000. The request should include a narrative of no longer than 500 words that must include the following:

  • Details on how the grant will be used and why it is need
  • Estimated number of youth that will benefit from the grant
  • Demographic information about the school and students
  • Detailed spending budget of how funds will be used
  • Copy of the school’s IRS tax determination letter showing the school’s tax-exempt charitable status

Grants must be submitted by the school principal. Please provide all contact information including name, title, school address, phone number and email. Examples of projects include equipment for P.E., sports, or after-school programs, field, playground or gymnasium refurbishment; activity trails, interactive fitness technology installations. Winners will be selected based on how great the need, how many students will be impacted, and how the equipment aligns with the mission of PLAY 60.

PLAY 60 Grants Timeline:
  • First date to submit applications – August 1, 2016
  • Last day to submit grant applications – September 9, 2016
  • Notification to grant recipients – September 16, 2016
  • On-field Grant Presentation at NRG Stadium – October 2, 2016
  • Disbursement of grant funds – March 2017
  • Funds must be used by – July 1, 2017

Please submit all grant requests to texanscare@houstontexans.com by September 9, 2016.
If selected, your school will be required to submit a grant evaluation form after funds have been allocated.
Click here for more information and for a sample grant letter and budget.

81716goforgold640Texas Children’s recently launched Go for the Gold, a well-being challenge that encourages you to be physically active for at least 30 minutes a day for a minimum of 20 days.

So far, more than 1,400 people have signed up for the challenge, which started August 1 and will run through Wednesday, August 31, to parallel the Rio Summer Olympics. Registration is still open. Click here to sign up for the challenge. For challenge details, visit the Wellness site.

To support you along the way, we have group exercise classes happening throughout the month of August. Click here to learn more.