July 25, 2006

Christmas in July

I'm in 2423 McRae, an ancient warehouse across the tracks from the Florida Hospital Cancer Center. This is a building with stories. The carpet makes that clear! Numerous faded sections, stains, and electronic pigtails tell tales of the assorted departments who have called this place, "home." No, I'm not here alone, but a dozen of Santa's best elves have allowed me to join them on one of the year's best adventures. The warehouse will have some great new stories to tell!

Today the cubicle walls are stacked against the wall and the largest room has been transformed into BACKPACK HQ. Already the folding tables are stacked high with wide ruled paper, pencils, hi-liters, notebooks, crayons, tissues, pens, glue, zip-lock bags, calculators, raincoats, and anti-bacterial sanitizer. All the stuff a 3rd grader could dream of taking to school.

• WOW! Some nurses just brought a Lisa Frank backpack that is decorated with the coolest bright kitty a Kindergarten girl will ever have seen. And it has brilliant little beach towel tied to the handle. And it's covered with fishes! We've found Nemo!!

Boxes of backpack supplies arrive every few minutes as secretaries, computer programmers, security officers, or a crew of transporters push a handcart through the door.

Backpacks for Kids. Backpacks donated by Florida Hospital employees. Rows and rows of backpacks prepared for delivery to 15 elementary schools where more than 2,000 K-5, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders will arrive at school with "nothing," and be given YOUR backpack!

• MERITA just showed me a backpack that some father must have had a hard time giving up. (I'll bet he bought three - one for Backpacks for kids, one for his 2nd-grade son, and one for himself). It's a car! You know, like from the movie CARS? It's got headlights, wheels, racing stripes, and I'll bet that if you squeeze the wheels you'll hear the voice of Lightening McQueen!

They are impressive. Trailmaster. Jantzen. Columbia Sportswear. Tony Stewart #20. Intrepid. High Trails. A growing line of bright pink American Princess packs. All gathering in the old warehouse, eager to have kids pawing through them "checking out their stuff."

Each Florida Hospital campus has a room like this one in Orlando, a Haven of Hope, a collection center where an extra dash of love is being stuffed into packs for the kids. Florida Hospital employees extend the healing ministry of Christ far outside our walls, even to more than 2,000 Central Florida school children!

When Jesus said, "Bring the children to me," maybe He was really saying, "Bring the kids to me so I can fit them with a Florida Hospital Backpack!"

• LISTS of backpack supplies are available from your campus Backpack Coordinator.
• IF YOU ARE on the Orlando campus, call 831-3174 or 831-4760 to arrange with Transportation for backpack pick-up. (the Transporter's van just arrived with 72 more packs!) • HERE'S a list of the campus coordinators:

o Campaign Leader Merita Ross 831-6502
o Apopka Linda Braithwaite
o Altamonte Melissa Chamchil
o Maitland Barbara Ouillette
o East Wylette Robinson
o Winter Park Ken Bradley
o Celebration Lorella Gilbert
o Kissimmee JoAnn VanNatta
o Orlando Stephanie Jones

• THE TRANSPORTER van just pulled up again. This is like Christmas in July!

Dick Duerksen
Assistant Vice President
Mission Development
Florida Hospital