HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MIAMI CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL!
by Lucy Morillo, Miami Children's Hospital Foundation
Sixty years ago children in South Florida and beyond received a wonderful gift – a new pediatric facility that grew to become Miami Children’s Hospital.
Opened by Variety Clubs International in March 1950 during the onset of our nation’s polio outbreak, the hospital quickly established itself as the South’s care center for children with polio. However, when the late Ambassador David M. Walters’ granddaughter was diagnosed with leukemia, no hospital here could adequately treat her. After the disease claimed her life in 1970, the Ambassador vowed he would find a way to fund a world-class pediatric hospital in the community so no child need leave South Florida in search of superior medical care.
Spurred by community needs and his vision, the Ambassador’s personal tragedy led to the establishment of Miami Children’s Hospital Foundation. Its mission: expand the hospital’s pediatric services through new specializations and advanced technology.
It took on the name Miami Children’s Hospital and adopted three Centers of Excellence: neonatology, heart and heart surgery, and neurology and neurosurgery. What followed has been remarkable. Today, Miami Children’s is ranked among the nation’s best pediatric hospitals. Home to the largest pediatric teaching program in the southeastern United States, it also is designated an American Nurses Credentialing Center, the profession’s most prestigious institutional honor.
The Miami Children’s Brain Institute, Congenital Heart Institute, Cancer Center, Orthopedics and other departments are truly world-class, providing each patient treatment that is appropriate to her or his cultural heritage with the aim of having all outcomes be consistent – every time.
Too few residents realize this world-class pediatric hospital is here…until it’s needed. Then, they quickly discover exceptional medical care for children has been in their own back yard for 60 years. The name says “Miami,” but this is more than a community or regional facility – it’s a hospital for all children worldwide.
Please join me in offering congratulations and support to this very special place in our community.
I deeply respect tradition and humbly recognize Ambassador Walters’ left large shoes for me to fill. As Foundation president, I commit to expanding his mission of funding the world-class care provided here. “Thank you” to all who made Miami Children’s Hospital what it is today…and I offer thanks to all of you who will continue to contribute to our mission during the next 60 years.
So happy 60th birthday to our beloved Miami Children's Hospital and thank you, Ambassador Walters, for a most treasured gift!
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LUCY MORILLO, president, Miami Children's Hospital Foundation, Miami
Please read the recent opinion piece by Lucy Morillo featured in The Miami Herald on March 14, 2010. The Miami Herald, March 14, 2010