Join the Chanukah Celebration at Sinai Hospital

Chanukah is a Jewish holiday celebrating the victory of the Maccabees' war against Assyrian Greeks in 165 B.C. The holiday lasts eight nights, symbolizing the miracle of a small amount of oil lasting longer than one day.

The Sinai Hospital Auxiliary invites you to join us for the annual Chanukah celebration at 6 p.m. today in the Sinai Hospital atrium. Rabbi Mitchell Ackerson will lead the menorah lighting ceremony.

Please bring a new unwrapped toy for a pediatric patient in the Alfred I. Coplan Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Center at the Herman & Walter Samuelson Children's Hospital at Sinai.

Chanukah refreshments will be served in Café Shalom following the program. Please RSVP to the Auxiliary Office at 410-601-5033. Media are invited to attend and shoot photos of the celebration.

Hyundai Provides Research Grant to Sinai Chief

Ask any parent of a child with cancer and you'll hear many of the same stories: financial difficulties, strain on the parent's marriage, trouble relating to families with healthy children, and the emotional hardship of seeing your child struggle with illness.

But the key word is 'ask.' Traditionally, research on children with cancer has focused around how the child copes with their diagnosis, not how the family is coping. Thanks to a $100,000 grant from the Hyundai Foundation, pediatric oncologist Joseph Wiley, M.D., will be able to investigate the social, academic and employment impact of cancer on other members of the family.

"Families would give up everything for their children, and frequently they have to," says Dr. Wiley, the chief of the Herman & Walter Samuelson Children's Hospital at Sinai. "If we can identify these stressers, we can find ways to reduce them."

Jen Miller, the mother of 18-month-old Emma Miller, says Dr. Wiley's words touched her. Emma, pictured at right with her mother and Dr. Wiley, is at Sinai anywhere from 1 to 5 days a week as she undergoes treatment for leukemia.

"This will help other families," Jen Miller says. "It's been super hard to find someone to relate to."

Additionally, "there's a huge financial impact on families where a child has cancer," says her mother-in-law Terry Miller. Her son is currently working two jobs, as Jen had to quit teaching in order to take care of Emma.

"Everyone is trying to do whatever we can, but it's a huge strain," Terry Miller says. "I'm really happy to see that someone is looking at that aspect of the cancer diagnosis."

The research grant award to Dr. Wiley is a part of Hyundai Motor America and hundreds of U.S. dealers “Hyundai Gives Hope on Wheels” campaign. During the month of September – National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month – Hyundai Hope on Wheels will donate $6.8 million to fight childhood cancer. For every Hyundai sold this month, participating dealers will donate $200 to the cause.

The “Hope Grants” in the amount of $100,000 are being given to 68 hospitals and nonprofit organizations across the country involved in childhood cancer research or support programs dedicated to improving the lives of children with cancer. Since 1998, Hyundai has given approximately $23 million to children's hospitals.

To learn more about the Herman & Walter Samuelson Children's Hospital at Sinai, call 410-601-WELL (9355).

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.

Mini-Golf Event to Benefit Cancer Patients

There's a good chance the weekend weather will be in the 80s - and what better way to get some sun and fun than by playing mini-golf?

The Mildred Mindell Cancer Foundation is hosting a mini-golf event at Tom Mitchell's Golf Complex, 301 Mitchell Drive, Reisterstown on Sunday. Proceeds from the event will go toward establishing a Child Life Library for cancer patients at the Herman & Walter Samuelson Children's Hospital at Sinai.

Mary Zell, a LifeBridge Health pharmacist, was motivated to hold the event in honor of her mother, Marilyn Zell. Both mother and daughter were past presidents of the Mildred Mindell Cancer Foundation. When Marilyn Zell passed away in January 2007, her daughter wanted to find a way to honor her mother.

"I overheard a child talking to his mother about how boring it was to do an infusion," Mary Zell says. "We want the Children's Hospital to have enough funds to be able to get new movie releases, books, games and art supplies. Lots of times a parent may need to miss or give up work to be with their child, which makes money tight. Even in the best circumstances, parents don't always have the means to throw down $20 on a new DVD."

The event will be from 2 to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Tickets for those over age 13 are $18; ages 4-12 are $15; and children under 3 are free. The rain date will be Monday, June 7, beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Baked goods, snacks and beverages available for purchase. For more information contact Mary at 410-262-8569.

Journey Bead Program Helps Kids with Cancer

Losing a child is every parent's worst nightmare. But two parents have found the strength to help other children fighting cancer.

After the death of their son John Eric from a cancer called neuroblastoma, Jay and Alisha Bartels created the The JEB Foundation to aide families with children receiving treatment at the Herman & Walter Samuelson's Children's Hospital at Sinai, specifically the Hematology/Oncology Department. The foundation provides a Journey Bead program to provide encouragement and inspiration to children. Each bead has a meaning, for example the child receives a red heart after a blood transfusion.

In a recent WBAL news story, Sinai social worker Mary Bohlen said the program allows children a way to document their strength.

"It's a way to visually see 'wow, look what I have done; look what I'm surviving," she said.

You can learn more about the JEB Foundation and Journey Bead Program by clicking here. For more information about the Children's Hospital, call 410-601-WELL (9355).

Edith Rosen Strauss Organization Kicks Off Its Year

The yearly opening meeting of the Edith Rosen Strauss Organization, a charitable group dedicated to raising money for children with cancer, was held today at Sinai Hospital. The lunch event also honored Lilyann Podell, a longtime member and devoted volunteer, pictured at left.

Sinai Hospital Chief of Pediatrics Joseph Wiley, M.D., spoke to the crowd of roughly 30. The organization raises roughly $30,000 a year for Sinai.

"Because of you, we have better outcomes, better quality of life and better resources for our patients," he said.

The number of pediatric oncology patients has grown, both nationally and at Sinai. The updated Herman & Walter Samuelson's Children Hospital at Sinai, expected to break ground in December, will have expanded capacity, including an increase in inpatient beds and waiting areas for families. The Pediatric Oncology Unit will double its number of exam rooms.

"I cannot thank this organization enough," Wiley said. He is pictured above with Podell and ERS co-chairs Beverly Stappler and Dorothy (Dotsey) Roth.