Our family is raising money for the CHOC Walk to honor the amazing team that carried us through some of our toughest years. When our Emma was only two months old, she began an intense journey with CHOC Hospital and the Urology Department. Regular hospital stays meant a lot of time spent in isolation, but the Child Life department never let her feel alone. With every hospital stay, Emma was given a new toy, craft, game, or hospital gown to look forward to. When Emma turned 5, she was given custom hospital gowns from Starlight of Captain Marvel, as well as Bell and the Little Mermaid. She lived in those gowns while in the hospital. The silly design made staying in gowns easier and less daunting. To this day, we keep them clean and ready to go in her go bag.

When Emma was 4, she had to have surgery on her bladder with Dr. Stephanie. The team agreed to allow her to wear her special Moana dress through the entire operation. Emma climbed happily into the nurse's arms and walked with Child Life back to the surgery room. They later told her mom and dad that she went to sleep easily and calmly while watching Moana with Child Life. 

In 2020, when COVID had strict visitation rules, Emma and her mom stayed in the isolation room for 4 days and weren't allowed to have extra guests. Emma's depression got to her, and she didn't want to get out of bed. Child Life brought in window markers for them to color all over and write messages to the nurses as they went about their day. Emma's dad and brother came to the side of the building on the street and looked for the window with the tree her and her mom had drawn. They couldn't see Emma, but she saw them, and they saw the tree. This gave her the boost she needed to get back out of bed and moving.

Every visit was dreaded, with every shot, every I.V, every ultrasound, every MRI, every VCUG, and every surgery. She hated all of it. Child Life and the nursing staff's patience and kindness gave Emma and her parents the support they needed to keep going every time. 

Each member of Child Life they met along the way kept her spirits up, kept her supplied with crafts, and made sure she could just focus on happiness and being a kid. We chose to walk and raise money so that CHOC can continue to provide this incredible love and support to other families. Thank you for helping us give back!

We can't wait to reunite with our Walk community for an early morning stroll through Disneyland® park and Disney California Adventure® park. You won't want to miss this one-of-a-kind experience filled with special entertainment and surprises before the parks open to the public.

Every dollar raised from this magical event will support health care programs, education, and research at Rady Children’s Health, formerly CHOC. More than two million children a year depend on Rady's. And our community's generosity is what provides access to the best possible care and services. 

You can help us exceed our fundraising goal to benefit children's health and well-being.

-Donating now by clicking the $ button next to the team member you'd like to donate to below or
-Joining The E~Walkers at this year's event by clicking the "Join Our Team" button on the right

Many thanks in advance for helping us write a new future for so many children and their families. 

With Gratitude,

The E~Walkers