2022 Year In Review - Valley Children's Healthcare Foundation

YEAR IN REVIEW

FISCAL YEAR 2022

Tyson 2022 CMN Champion Valley Children’s Hospital

Valley Children’s Healthcare Foundation Board of Directors

Chair | Dan Adams

Vice-Chair | Ken Ramos

Secretary | Linda Bliss

President | Robert Saroyan

Treasurer | Michele Waldron

Kim Ruiz Beck

Erin Berberian-Gleason

Michael Carr

Blair Cunnings

Terance Frazier

Kathy Horstmann Huebert

Connie McClaskey

Paul McDougal

Lance Mouw

Patrick Murphy Caren Myers

Skip Nugent

J.R. Shannon

Richard Shehadey

Debbie Smades-Henes

Nadarasa Visveshwara, MD

Kevin Williams

Directors Emeriti

Jeannine Campos Grech

David Nalchajian

Bill Smittcamp

Letter From the Foundation President

Dear Friends,

As you may have noticed from the cover page, the theme of this year’s Valley Children’s Healthcare Foundation Year in Review is “resilience” as we highlight our fiscal year that just concluded September 30. Seemingly every day, I encounter stories of resilience in our community, among the patients and families we serve, and in our workforce. Resilient business owners have made it through the pandemic and are mastering success in an environment that is forever changed. Resilient families juggle responsibilities at home and at work as they trust Valley Children’s to help their child get well in their hour of need. Resilient patients lean on our physicians, nurses and other staff to help them feel better as they face the challenges of treatment. And it is with great resilience that Valley Children’s clinicians continue to bring their best for kids each day, knowing that children and families are counting on them.

As you look through this Year in Review, it is my hope that you will be touched by the stories of generosity, both great and small. We are fully aware of the fact that Valley Children’s is able to provide high-quality, comprehensive healthcare for the region’s kids only because of the generosity of you and others like you. On behalf of Valley Children’s Healthcare President and CEO Todd Suntrapak, we thank you for your generous support.

We are incredibly grateful for your continued generosity that enables us to remain focused on our precious mission: to continually improve the health and wellbeing of children. For that, we cannot thank you enough.

Gratefully,

Robert V. Saroyan President

Valley Children’s Healthcare Foundation

Valley Children’s and Disney Team Up to Deliver Comfort and Joy to Patients

On June 30, 2022, Valley Children’s Hospital unveiled magical Disney interactive artwork and other imaginative installations. Teams across Disney, including their world-renowned Walt Disney Imagineers, worked with a global network of experts to identify unique experiences Disney could provide that would ease the fear and anxiety of a hospital stay for patients and their families.

“At Valley Children’s, our doctors and staff provide the most exceptional care for our kids – and we also recognize the importance of playtime, wonder and joy to a child’s recovery,” said Beverly Hayden-Pugh, Valley Children’s senior vice president, chief nursing officer and chief transformation officer. “We thank Disney for bringing their beloved characters and creativity to our hospital and easing the stress of our families during their stay.”

Care

Packages: Filled with fun activities and keepsakes such as room decals, journals and playing cards, the curated care packages allow children to personalize their hospital rooms.

Disney-Themed Starlight Gowns: Featuring familiar characters and designs on hospital wear provide patients with fun and comfy clothing during their hospital stay.

Magic Art: Delightful digital screens with favorite characters that deliver fun, animated and inspirational messages to patients in English and Spanish.

Mobile Movie Theater: Inspired by the cinema on Main Street, USA, at Disneyland Resort, the mobile movie theater offers patients and their families a place to gather, create memories and watch complimentary Disney movies and other content.

The ABC30 “Futures Worth Fighting For” Telethon Keeps Miracles Happening

Miracles kept happening during the 8th Annual ABC30 “Futures Worth Fighting For” Telethon, which took place on August 11, 2022. The event raised a grand total of $116,113, bringing our eight-year total to more than $1 million to benefit Valley Children’s Hospital.

For an entire day, ABC30 Action News co-anchors Vanessa Vasconcelos and Warren Armstrong covered the exciting event, which featured inspiring stories from Valley Children’s patients. Throughout the day, volunteers and sponsors enthusiastically took calls from donors across the Central Valley.

We want to express a special thank you to the team at ABC30 Action News, as well as volunteers and donors, for your continued support of the annual ABC30 “Futures Worth Fighting For” Telethon. A huge thank you to our sponsors for their remarkable contribution to the event. We are truly grateful for the generosity of our Central Valley community!

Meet Our 2022 Champions!

Every day at Valley Children’s, kids are battling life-changing circumstances. Despite the odds, these kids show the world their amazing resiliency. Olivia was the ambassador for this year’s beloved tradition of Kids Day, and Tyson is the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals champion for the Central Valley.

Tyson’s and Olivia’s stories are representative of the more than 150,000 kids from all over the Central Valley who came to Valley Children’s last year. They are not only resilient, but also have some of the biggest hearts.

Images had revealed several tumors surrounded both of Olivia’s lungs. That same day, she was diagnosed with a stage four Wilms tumor on her right kidney. After just six weeks of treatment, Olivia responded so well that most of her tumors were gone and a larger tumor had reduced in size by 50%! This allowed doctors to operate. The road ahead consisted of ongoing chemo for about nine months until Olivia was cancer-free!

Olivia 2022 Kids Day Ambassador

Weighing less than an unopened soda can, Tyson was fortunate just to survive. Born at 24 weeks’ gestation weighing only 12.7 ounces, Tyson is living proof that even those as vulnerable as he was have a winning chance. Today, Tyson loves being a kid and playing baseball.

You can find Tyson’s and Olivia’s stories and more at valleychildrens.org/foundation

Tyson 2022 CMN Champion Valley Children’s Hospital

Ace Hardware

Ace is “The Helpful Place” in more ways than one. Founded in 1924 by a small group of Chicago hardware store owners, Ace Hardware is the largest retailer-owned hardware co-operative in the world, with more than 5,400 locally-owned and operated hardware stores in approximately 70 countries.

Their belief in the power of “local” is one of the reasons for the longstanding partnership Ace Hardware has built with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals that has endured more than three decades. Ace has supported Valley Children’s since 1992 and has raised nearly $400,000 for the hospital the past 30 years.

Last year, 28 Ace stores in the Central Valley raised a record-breaking $105,710. The top five stores were located in Fresno, Turlock, Modesto and Ceres. Local Ace stores continue to give back to Valley Children’s through their round-up and Bucket Days campaigns.

Rylee and Sam Use Their Senior Project to Help Patients

It is with great appreciation we introduce you to Rylee, a former patient who decided to make a difference for patients in the Ambulatory Treatment Center (ATC) at Valley Children’s Hospital. Rylee was treated at Valley Children’s for six years with initial care and follow-up to treat ulcerative colitis.

During Rylee’s time as a patient, she noticed that having more options for patients to pass the time would make for a better patient experience. For their senior project, Rylee and her boyfriend, Sam, held a vendor fair and dinner that served homemade dinner and desserts donated by family and friends. There was a silent auction and opportunity drawing, as well as games and activities for the kids.

Rylee and Sam were excited to donate $2,494 from their efforts. Rylee is so grateful to the ATC nurses and staff for the amazing care she received that she plans to make this an annual event.

Ceres

Fresno

NE Fresno

Modesto

Turlock

Star Power Is Shining Bright at Valley Children’s

The generosity of these celebrities to Valley Children’s Hospital continues to help us support the health and well-being of children here in the Central Valley.

In June of 2022, Derek Carr and our DC4KIDS Touchdown Challenge members attended the annual members reception to celebrate the impact their support made during the 2021 Las Vegas Raiders’ season. Members and their guests enjoyed a meet and greet with Derek, along with a signing opportunity. Derek also shared his passion for Valley Children’s and answered questions from the audience.

For more information or to join the DC4KIDS Touchdown Challenge, please visit valleychildrens.org/derekcarr

Actress Jennifer Garner joined us via Zoom in November 2021 to share a few kind words to Valley Children’s staff for their incredible efforts during the pandemic. She even treated the team to some coffee and sweet treats from a local Central Valley bakery.

For seven decades, Valley Children’s has served the more than 1.3 million kids living in the Central Valley. They inspire us to be better, push us to fight harder and drive us to bring our best every day.

On behalf of Valley Children’s and the children and families we serve, we want to express our appreciation for your support. Through your generosity, we hope to continue that commitment to children’s health for generations to come.

Every gift matters. Please consider making a donation to help care for Central Valley kids. You can make a donation by calling Valley Children’s Healthcare Foundation at 559-353-7100 or online at donate.valleychildrens.org.

Valley Children’s Healthcare Foundation has received the Platinum Seal of Transparency from Candid (formerly known as GuideStar), an organization that promotes nonprofit transparency by monitoring and evaluating charity performance for five years in a row. This recognition demonstrates Valley Children’s commitment to transparency in fundraising and dedication to stewardship.