Santa's Nice List

Amir: SANTA! SANTA! Did you get my letter?

Santa: I did, and I read it twice.

Amir: You did? Am I on the nice list this year?

Santa: You most certainly are!

Amir: Alright! So I might get the things I put in my letter to you?

Santa: Mrs. Claus, what do you think?

Mrs. Claus: I think Amir is going to be very happy when it is his turn!

I had the great fortune to hear this conversation recently as Santa Claus visited Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital and passed out gifts to all of the patients.  A group of patients, staff, and volunteers were standing outside in front of the main entrance excitedly waiting for Santa and Mrs. Claus to arrive.  When they did, young Amir was right there to greet and welcome them back to Ranken Jordan.  Every year the Maryland Heights Police and Fire Departments bring Santa, Mrs. Claus, and their elves to visit the kids.  This year was no different than any other as it was simply an amazing day.

Thanks to the compassion and generosity of the great men and women of those two departments, Christmas is a very special time for the kids at Ranken Jordan.  The looks and sounds associated with the pure joy and excitement they have are indescribable (you can see dozens of great photographs from this day on the Maryland Heights Police Department's Facebook page).  There is nothing like putting a smile on the face of a child and the police officers and firefighters make certain all the children (as well as families, staff, and volunteers) have huge smiles on their faces.  Each year I am grateful that I am allowed to be there for this day and see how much fun the kids have as every child gets time to sit on Santa's lap and get their gifts.

One thing the kids may not yet realize is that for some of us, just being there for that day is as great of a gift for us as the presents are to them.  And you know, the great thing is, the gift that I am talking about (from my own personal perspective) also occurs every Wednesday afternoon at 2:00 p.m.  Their smiles and laughter are some of the most special gifts the kids give us every week on Golfday.  As soon as I walk out of the front doors at 11365 Dorsett Road, I am already counting down the hours until the following week's Golfday.  I also walk out hoping once again that I did half as much for the kids as they did for me.

CEO of Patients

"Ability is what you're capable of doing.

Motivation determines what you do.

Attitude determines how well you do it."

--Lou Holtz

Walk through the doors of Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital and you will see world-class ability, unbelievable motivation, and never quit attitudes.  After you make those observations of the staff, you will see the kids take all those things to an entirely new level!  Not a week goes by that I am not in awe of the ability, motivation, and attitude of the kids (and staff) at Ranken Jordan.  Each of the above mentioned traits is readily visible during our weekly golf clinics.

One of our regular junior golfers perfectly illustrates the quote which begins this blog post.  CC (aka the "CEO of Patients") has far greater ability than what she believed a year ago.  At times she is a typical teenager and does not like to show just how motivated she is to exceed everybody's expectations for her.  CC's outgoing, effervescent personality and attitude quickly spread among everybody and shortly after her arrival each week everyone was laughing and smiling!  Just over a year ago CC's life would forever change as a tragic accident left her with a spinal cord injury resulting in paralysis.  Prior to arriving at Ranken Jordan, CC had never before picked up a golf club as she always thought "golf is boring."  That quickly changed!

From her first time swinging a golf club, CC had a very natural, smooth swing.  She immediately set a goal to do what perplexes so many golfers -- get the golf ball in the hole (target) in as few strokes as possible.  She will tell you that it did not take her long to accomplish that goal and moved on to figuring out how to hit the ball as far as possible while still getting consistent contact.  CC and I got to work on refining her swing to the point where it was consistent and repeatable while providing maximum power.  Approximately once a month we try and take the kids to the driving range at the Quarry at Crystal Springs Golf Course.  Her hard work at Ranken Jordan and also at the driving range was on display as CC hit one of the ceremonial tee shots to start the 2017 golf tournament.  Did I mention she ripped it about 110 yards right down the middle of the fairway?!?!

Spending time with the kids at Ranken Jordan is rewarding for a number of reasons.  The foremost of those reasons is watching their health improve through their hard work with their care team.  However seeing a child's face light up after they hit that first solid shot, as we saw with CC, leads to many special, memorable moments.  There are physical, social, and emotional benefits the kids receive through playing golf (and sports in general).  They also learn to set goals, create a plan to work towards achieving those goals, and then putting that plan into action.  Their attitudes and motivation prove to everyone that they have different abilities that allow them to accomplish whatever dream their mind can conceive.  As Clemson University football team's equipment manager David Saville said in a recent story on ESPN, "the only disability is a bad attitude."