WESTFIELD - Children in Stacy Cochran's Daycare recently set up a lemonade stand and donated the proceeds to the Westfield Memorial Hospital Foundation. Surprising foundation Development Director Patricia Gaughan DiPalma with their generous and unexpected gesture, the lemonade stand was held on the day of the hospital foundation's 20th annual WMHF Golf Tournament.
"'Friday the 13th' turned out be a good omen for both the hospital foundation and its largest fundraiser," DiPalma remarked. "We were actually tallying the final numbers when the children arrived at the hospital with this kind and unexpected gift of $806.87, making us that much closer to realizing our goal. The children are all so precious and this very thoughtful and kind gesture literally took our breath away."
When asked why she and the children wanted to hold this fundraiser, daycare provider Stacy Cochran of Westfield replied that they held a lemonade stand last year to benefit St. Jude's Hospital and this year, they chose WMH Foundation to be its recipient. Cochran and her close friend, Jennifer Phillips wanted to give back to Westfield Memorial Hospital to show appreciation for saving the life of Phillips' daughter, 6-year-old Cassidy, last April 30 while visiting her grandmother.
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Pictured, from left: Tristen Phillips, Lauren Cochran, Cassidy Phillips, Tyler Cochran and Kady Phillips in Stacy Cochran’s arms donated the proceeds from their lemonade stand to WMH Development Director Patty DiPalma for Westfield Memorial Hospital Foundation’s 20th annual Golf Tournament. This year’s tournament’s proceeds will be used to purchase equipment in the WMH Emergency Department.
What could have been a tragedy became a life-saving moment in young Cassidy's life when the WMH Emergency Department's (ED) staff's quick call to action helped to save the little girl who was unresponsive and in distress from a seizure. Cassidy was assessed by the Emergency Medical Team (EMT) team and transported to the hospital; once stabilized the young patient was air-lifted to Women and Children's Hospital at Buffalo and into the capable hands of the Chief of Pediatric Neurosurgery Dr. Zeetai Li, who stated that "everyone involved with her care did everything right in saving Cassidy's life."
In a "thank you" letter to the WMH ED staff, Phillips' maternal grandmother wrote, "Thank you, thank you, thank you this is just one of the reasons WMH is needed here! Again, thank you for being God's angels in Westfield, who saves lives! You are priceless!"
For more information on how to save lives by giving to the Westfield Memorial Hospital Foundation, contact Dipalma at 793-2338.
