A Letter From Our Founder

It began in 2008 while I was playing Wii baseball with a patient in the Teen Lounge at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. As I struck out to his delight I looked around and thought, WOW! There was another patient playing football on Xbox and three more on the computers checking out their Facebook while they surfed the net. One of the moms whose child was in isolation sat in one of the big lounge chairs and we talked her into watching a movie on the flat screen to relax. Meanwhile another mom was quietly playing Chutes and Ladders with her son. All the while one of the Child Life Specialists was hosting an impromptu craft session for a few girls who wanted to make beaded bracelets.

All this while yet another one of the Child Life Specialists from the Playroom for the little ones down the hall painted a large banner that read “Congratulations on Your Last Chemo!” The sign was a surprise for one of the kiddos doing sand art in the other room.

Amongst it all was the familiar flutter of parents as they popped in and out to check out and return anything and everything. At times it was a DVD and maybe even a portable DVD player if their child’s room was not equipped with one for watching a movie at bedside. Other times they were looking to borrow a laptop for their child to check in with their friends on Facebook or check out things online if they weren’t up to leaving their room or maybe it was simply a board game and some art supplies. Just one moment in Child Life and all I wanted to do was help a hospital.

Nina Gutierrez
Founder & Director
Help A Hospital