When your child is sick, the feeling is indescribable. When your child is lying in the hospital bed, your heart breaks with each tear that spills and each cry that is uttered. And when you watch your child as they cry until the gas knocks them out, and then watch them cry as the pain and fear enters their body as they awaken, the fear you feel is absolutely physically painful. Watching as the blood is drawn or sweat is gathered for testing leaves your mind reeling with the possibilities of what challenges your child may have to face. Hearing monitors that startle you from your sleep to alert the nurses that your child is not breathing stops your breath as well.
We were extremely fortunate. My son's problems were fixed with two surgeries. My daughter ended up having a false positive for her cystic fibrosis test. The many times we visited the ER at children's hospital, we were always able to come home with stitched up or fixed up children. Some people spend a LOT more time at Children's hospital, including a friend of mine whose strength never ceases to amaze me.
Two of my memories from our hospital stays are from the day we left. As we rode down the elevator, another dad looked at us with tears in his eyes and said "congratulations." My eyes swelled with tears as we stepped off the elevator and watched him walk to a group that was gathering huddled in prayers. My husband was carrying all of our pillows and bags and was at the desk while I was waddling my nine-month pregnant self out with my son gleefully skipping by my side. The gentleman at the desk asked my husband if he was leaving to do some laundry and my husband replied with "nope, we are headed home!" The gentleman said "well, that is the best news I have heard all day."
And it is true. While you are there you feel an unspoken bond with the other families. Riding in the elevator, you see pain in so many eyes. The heartwrenching cries as some leave without their children. The exhaustion that is a permanent fixture on the faces of those who are there for the long haul. And the fear that just isn't spoken outloud. Staying there is an experience I will never, ever forget.
There are things you never know, you will never see, unless you stay at the hospital. Things that mean SO MUCH to the families that are there. The games that take the children's minds off their illnesses for just a few minutes, the teen rooms that let the teens feel "normal" for a little while. The family rooms that allow the exhausted parents to get some sleep so they can function clearly without being too far from their children. The state of the art equipment that help miracles to happen. The doctors and nurses that truly care, and that will keep searching and trying and never giving up. There are stories you hear in the cafeteria that give hope. There are volunteers that do anything they can to put a smile on the faces of the children. From the smallest medical procedures to the largest. the "normal" to the precarious and terrifying....there is hope. There is love. There is strength. And sprinkled all throughout, there are miracles. Many of these miracles are made through teamwork. Teamwork and help from unexpected places.
Needless to say, Children's Hospital is extremely near and dear to my heart. So every year around this time, I join in the 36-hours for kids. To give you the quick "press release" details of it, Alice 105.9 is getting ready to once again kick off its annual three-day radiothon to benefit Children’s Hospital Colorado. Alice’s 36 Hours for Kids, runs from February 15-17 and aims to raise more than one million dollars for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. Last year, a record-breaking $1.65 million was raised, with one hundred percent of the funds staying in the community and going directly to Children’s Colorado.
One of the top radiothons in the nation, Alice’s 36 Hours for Kids is a three day, 36-hour live broadcast from the Boettcher Atrium at Children’s Colorado. For the eleventh year in a row, Alice 105.9 will break from its regular programming to focus on the children and families who have had personal experiences at Children’s Colorado. Interviews with past and present patients of the hospital and audio montages of children’s life-altering and inspirational stories are broadcast live, and listeners are encouraged to call in and make a donation to Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals .I usually spend that 36 hours glued to the radio, often in tears. Last year my children took their little bags of coins that they had been receiving for allowance and dumped it in the jar (as we will be doing again this year). Every so often, my son remembers his friends from the hospital in his prayers, and asks God to let them know that we are thinking of them and hope that they get better.
You can help raise more than $1 million for the Children’s Hospital Colorado by calling 1-800-458-KIDS during the event, giving online or starting a personal fundraising page at www.YouMakeMiracles.com. Follow online at www.facebook.com/childrenshospitalcolorado and Twitter www.twitter.com/ChildrensColo.
