From The Orange County Register
By Mark Eades / Staff Writer
ORANGE – The patients, all young kids, smiled as they exited the elevator onto the second floor at Children’s Hospital of Orange County, right into the waiting arms of Minnie Mouse.
Minnie was there to lead the kids on the “Minnie Walk” at the hospital Wednesday morning.
“It’s really more of a festival,” said Zach Abrams, CHOC’s senior director of special events. “We created it just for the young patients who can’t really take part in the CHOC Walk in the Park at Disneyland.”
The Walk in the Park takes place Oct. 30, and the “Minnie Walk” was one of many events and fundraisers done in the month before the main event. The walk is a major fundraising event for the hospital and draws nearly 15,000 participants.
The “Minnie Walk,” which is more of a stroll, takes place on the second floor in the Disney Family Lobby, an area created just for patients and families. During the two-hour event, patients walk around, visiting booths from CHOC’s many corporate sponsors where the young patients, many with debilitating diseases or other life-threatening issues, get the chance to receive things like candy, snacks, toys and even a slice of pie from Polly’s Pies.
Many of the young patients walking Wednesday were missing hair and were plugged into portable IV units that rolled along with them, but their first and frequently last stop, was for a visit with Minnie Mouse.
“She has been here every year and always brings a smile to many of the kids’ faces,” Abrams said.
Among the special visitors Wednesday was Debbie Hicks of Anaheim. Her daughter, Timmaree, was a patient for two years at CHOC, but passed away in late 2008 at the age of nine from a very rare type of eye cancer.
During her long stay at CHOC, Timmaree used her artistic talent to paint rocks with images of butterflies. They became collector’s items for much of the CHOC staff, and many would make a donation if they received one of her painted rocks.
Now Hicks helps make rock-painting kits for patients at the hospital, which are funded by garage and bake sales she stages throughout the year. In seven years, they have been able to create 18,000 kits.
This year, Timmaree was named the honorary ambassador of the walk in abstentia, to represent all the kids, living or dead. Hicks plans to lead the walk, her 10th time taking part.
“Team Timmaree has raised nearly $300,000 since 2007, and we just raised $25,000 at an event recently,” Hicks said.
The CHOC Walk in the Park, which is a 5-kilometer walk, takes place on Oct. 30. Abrams said that this year, many of the participants will be allowed to wear costumes. For Hicks, her team’s costume will be the Team Timmeree T-Shirt. For more information on the walk, go to its website.
Contact the writer: meades@scng.com or follow on Twitter @markaeades
