Dear Friends,
We hope you are as excited as we are to welcome the holiday season! There is always something to be thankful for - and this holiday season we are thankful for you! As we look toward the last two months of the year, we invite you to read about what our Child Life department at Holtz Children’s Hospital does to address the needs of our patients and families during their stay with us. It is our sincere hope that you will also join us in making the holidays special for all the children who visit us each day.
We’d also like to take a moment to thank everyone who came out to support our inaugural Mind Your Health event, held on October 10 - World Mental Health Day. This event could not have been possible without our amazing sponsors. We thank you all for helping raise funds to support mental health awareness programs and initiatives at Jackson Behavioral Health Hospital.
Finally, Give Miami Day is around the corner! Join us on November 18th in celebrating the biggest day for nonprofits in Miami, by donating to Jackson Health Foundation. Follow us on social media and stay connected. We’re hoping for another record-breaking year with your generosity.
Sincerely,
|
|
Charmaine Gatlin
Co-President & Chief Operating Officer
|
|
Flavia Llizo
Co-President & Chief Development Officer
|
|
Learn More About Our Child Life Department |
|
Child Life services at Holtz Children’s Hospital are all about knowing that it takes more than just medicine to help kids feel better. Child Life specialists are specifically trained in child development, pediatric psychological and social support, and therapeutic play. Working individually with each pediatric patient and family, our child life specialists help children feel more comfortable in the hospital and cope with their illness or disease.
“At Holtz, we now have six child life specialists, two music therapists, and a child life assistant,” says Beth Behr, Holtz Children’s Hospital’s Child Life Department Supervisor. “We each have a unit and together we see around 60 patients a day.”
Certified Child Life Specialists are critical in helping families cope with a new diagnosis and the management of ongoing conditions. Their evidence-based interventions focus on reducing fear and anxiety while offering education to patients and family members. Their help in supporting our patients through trauma, injuries, illness and loss is life-changing and heartfelt.
In the spirit of bringing normalcy into a hospital stay, every November, our Child Life Specialists make Thanksgiving possible inside the hospital for all patients. Child Life facilitates the full Thanksgiving experience for the children and their families, bringing a sense of togetherness and gratefulness despite the circumstances.
“We do menu printing, Thanksgiving-themed paper goods, and we make it feel like home,” Behr said. “The Thanksgiving meal is created in our cafeteria. We let the kids pick what they want off the menu, and they get to enjoy that with their parents.”
We are so grateful for our Child Life department, helping children and their families overcome life’s most challenging events not just during the holiday season, but 365 days a year.
|
|
Corporate & Donor Spotlight
The Adrian Family and Adrian Builders
|
|
Vivian Adrian, and the entire Adrian family, is devoted to supporting Holtz Children’s Hospital and have done so for decades. Vivian, who has been a Guardian Angel for over 22 years, has been a driving force behind the family’s support of Holtz and in particular our Child Life Department. Since 2010, when her daughter Sophia became a teen volunteer with the Child Life staff, the family has been a strong advocate for the Child Life team. Furthermore, this experience inspired Sophia to become a Child Life Specialist herself! In addition to the family’s active role as Guardian Angels, their company, Adrian Builders, has also stepped up to the plate and has sponsored Jackson Health Foundation events over the years.
Vivian Adrian, along with Holtz Children’s Child Life Specialist Heather Mahoney, launched the Amazon Gift Registry as a means to encourage toy donations to the hospital. A quick visit to the gift registry lets the donor easily buy and ship a gift for patients at Holtz with the click of a button (more information below).
We thank the Adrian family and Adrian Builders for their endless support. We are beyond grateful for their generosity each and every year.
|
|
Send a Gift Through Holtz Children’s Hospital Amazon Gift Registry |
|
Did you know that you can send a gift to the children at Holtz by visiting Amazon? Our Amazon gift registry is especially for the Child Life department serving children at Holtz. Toys and gifts help our pediatric patients enormously while they are in the hospital, especially since COVID restrictions have limited their ability to visit our playrooms. You too can order a gift directly from Amazon and have it shipped straight to Holtz. Check it out at https://amzn.to/3Cp9XNV. |
|
On November 4th, Shop for Holtz Children’s Hospital at Saks Fifth Avenue |
|
Saks Fifth Avenue invites you to shop for Holtz Children's Hospital on Thursday, November 4, from noon to 7 p.m. Join us at our Miami stores for a champagne toast at noon and shop the latest and greatest trends.
Jewelry on 1 | Saks Dadeland
Jewelry on 1 | Saks Bal Harbour
Ladies' Shoes on 2 | Saks Brickell City Center
Saks Fifth Avenue is proud to donate 10%* of event sales to benefit Holtz Children's Hospital and Jackson Health Foundation. For more information contact, Gradon Hadaway.
Must RSVP to receive an exclusive bar code to present when shopping.
|
|
22nd Annual
Guardians of the Children
Luncheon & Fashion Show
November 23, 2021
|
|
Thanks to the overwhelming support of the community and our donors, the 22nd Annual Guardians of the Children Luncheon & Fashion Show is sold out. However, you can still show your support for our young patients in need receiving care at Holtz Children’s Hospital by purchasing a chance drawing ticket. For more information, click here.
|
|
Parental Guidance
November 18, 2021
|
|
Click here to RSVP. Check out past sessions and resources here. |
|
Give Miami Day
November 18, 2021
|
|
Mark your calendars. On Thursday, November 18, our community will celebrate the 10th anniversary of Give Miami Day - a 24-hour fundraising event benefiting non-profit organizations throughout South Florida.
As we kick-off the season of gratitude, everyone is invited to support their favorite charity and we hope you’ll make a gift in support of Jackson Health Foundation. Your gift will be matched by The Miami Foundation and provide invaluable support to the areas of greatest need within our health system. Gifts like yours help us support Jackson’s mission of providing one standard of quality care to every Miami-Dade resident, regardless of their ability to pay.
Do you want to learn more about Jackson Health Foundation and Give Miami Day? Contact Alexandra Salcedo at [email protected].
|
|
Jackson Health Foundation | www.SupportJHF.org
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
