The Greenfield Park Gazette

Here is a terrific post by Dean Clark, thanks Dean - nice job.
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Two weeks ago my daughter Brianna broke her arm in a gymnastics accident. My wife immediately took her to, where else, the Montreal Children’s Hospital. They arrived at the hospital at 8:30 PM. Based on recent media reports about emergency waiting times in Montreal area hospitals, they expected it to be a long night. Brianna was home in bed with a bright pink fiberglass cast a mere four hours later! Not only that, but my wife could not stop raving about the staff and the excellent treatment Brianna had received. All she had was a broken arm.

It turns out that radiology is on the same floor as oncology and nuclear medicine. It is easy to be patient and wait for an X-ray, when you see sick children with I.V. poles and oxygen tanks with their hair starting to grow in. A little perspective goes a long way when your own child is hurt. As Dr. Claude Grandbois, current cancer patient and a legend at the Children’s put it in his retirement speech two weeks ago:

A diagnosis like mine, at my age, is acceptable…it is understandable. It is not acceptable in pediatric patients. We must find a way to cure these diseases in pediatric patients.

I don’t know if Wally Neveu and his organizing committee for the St-Bruno Challenge Cup Softball Tournament ever met Dr. Grandbois, but one thing is certain; they understand and believe in his message…and they are doing something about it!

This year marked the 11th year for the tournament, which has raised more than $240 000 for the Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation. The tournament was held July 4, 5 & 6 in St-Bruno. There were games and face painting for the kids, a live band (What is Hip) and refreshments galore. Team registration was at capacity (32 men’s teams and 12 women’s teams) and the weather was perfect. As he worked behind the counter at the beer tent on Saturday, I asked Wally how much money he thought the tournament could raise this year. “Probably $35 000 to $40 000. We’re hoping for $40 000.” Then with a sincere grin, he handed me my two Coors Lights and said “Thanks for participating!” You see, Wally is typical of people who work for and on behalf of the Children’s. He and his team have devoted countless hours to organize and run this successful event, and his first instinct is to thank me for participating….

Hey Wally… on behalf of all of the kids at the Children’s and on behalf of all of us who merely participated “Thanks!”

There were some great plays made, and many more missed, but there are no game stats or tournament victors that need reporting…the kids won.

You can visit the Challenge Cup website for more information.
The Tournament helps the Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation