Superheroes Arrive at Sinai Hospital

At Sinai, our pediatric patients are our superheroes. Today, those patients got to meet their superheros: Batman, Robin and Wonder Woman.

Thanks to Hope for Henry, a foundation dedicated to bringing smiles to hospitalized children, the characters arrived bearing gifts, food and general awesomeness. Pictured above is 18-month-old pediatric oncology patient Emma Miller, with her mother Jen and men who need no introduction.

The Hope for Henry Foundation first began supporting patients at Sinai in 2009, and continues to support the inpatient and outpatient pediatrics patients with gifts and other celebrations. Mary Bohlen, social worker in the Division of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at Sinai Hospital, says there have been at least six birthday celebrations courtesy of Hope for Henry. The parties are thrown when a pediatric patient has to spend his or her birthday in the hospital. The patient not only gets a personalized cake or balloon, but is allowed to choose an age-appropriate gift ranging from an iPod to a PSP player.

Today was the first Superhero Celebration at Sinai, but there are hopes for further events.

"When you are a child in the hospital, time moves very slowly," says Hope for Henry Foundation director Laurie Strongin. "A day like today, you won't even remember the medical treatment - you'll remember meeting Batman and Wonder Woman."

Children like Thomas Georgiou, pictured left, also got to have pizza, juice and cake today. Other activities including having a caricaturist draw a picture of them as a superhero, getting their photo taken in a photo booth, making their own cape, having their face painted, and receiving a variety of gifts.

"This is such an exciting time for the department of pediatrics and the Herman & Walter Samuelson Children's Hospital at Sinai," says Shannon Wollman, manager of Development at Sinai. "Working with new organizations like Hope for Henry enhances the mission of making children and their families feel like they are being well taken care of."

But don't take our word for it - below is a short video of 3-year-old Jeffrey Schwantes of New Jersey, who had surgery last month with Shawn Standard, M.D. Jeffrey and his mother came over from Hackerman Patz house to visit with the superheros. He's also pictured above left with Wonder Woman.