Introducing Rev. Hal C Weldin

My name is Rev. Hal C Weldin and I’m very excited to be joining the Oncology and Hospice teams at Children’s on February 11th 2013. I have been in full time ministry for 32 years in a variety of settings, focusing on children, youth and family ministry and pastoral care. I taught at Luther Seminary for 9 years preparing pastors to care for children and families in congregational settings. Three years ago I made the vocational shift to Chaplaincy. Most recently I have been working as a Hospice Chaplain and Bereavement Coordinator for Interim Home Healthcare Hospice in Roseville. I completed my Clinical Pastoral Care Residency year this last September with the Palliative Care team and Neurology at Abbott Northwestern.

I am very interested in caring for people in their times of distress and assisting them in their own spiritual discovery and journey. I value collaboration and team work. I truly believe that we are at our best when we are working together and tending to our shared experience as we care for our patients and family members. I think I bring a genuine energy and enthusiasm in my work and I care deeply about the human experience.

I have way too many interests than time to enjoy them. I am a life long fly fisherman, amateur carpenter, photographer, cook, and all things technology.

I look forward to meeting each of you as we start our journey together.

Let's give a warm welcome to Sam Schackman

My name is Sam Schackman and I am so excited to be the new full time child life specialist working for the clinic! One of the aspects I love most about being a child life specialist is the privilege of working with such amazing children and families!

Shortly after I graduated from the University of Minnesota, I moved to Miami, Florida to complete my Child Life internship at Holtz Children’s Hospital at Jackson Memorial Hospital. Currently, I am pursuing my graduate education at Saint Mary’s University in Minneapolis. For over a year now, I have had the opportunity of working with patients and families at Children’s Hospitals and Clinics as a child life specialist.

I am thrilled to make the Cancer and Blood Disorders Clinic in Minneapolis my new home and I look forward to getting to know each of you!

How many boxes of band-aides can you count?

Katy Collier initiated a cool project and collected ~150 boxes of band-aids that she donated to the clinic.

Hello,
My name is Katy Collier and I have been undergoing treatment for Leukemia since January 10th, 2012. As part of my church confirmation I did a service project. My project is a band-aid drive for Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Clinic of Minneapolis. Being an oncology patient I know being somewhere you don’t want to be and getting poked is no fun, but the best part is seeing the band-aid you get. Most of the choices at the clinic were not that fun, so I wanted to do something nice for the other kids.

I thought it would be awesome to bring a ton of band-aids for all the other patients. It’s a great way for nurses and doctors to make the kids feel better and less scared. Who knew a band-aid could be so magical. I started by sending a note of what I was doing to family and friends. I asked if they could donate band- aids to the clinic and then send the note on to their family and friends. With help from people around the country I collected 154 boxes ranging from 25 to 350 band- aids per box.

I was really happy to see all the band- aids I collected because I was not expecting to get so many!
Katy Collier

Happy 1 year anniversary to the International OTST Registry!

December 2012 marked the one year anniversary of the International Ovarian and Testicular Stromal Tumor Registry based here at Children's Hospital and Clinics of Minnesota. In the first year, the Int'l OTST Registry enrolled 26 female participants from Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina, Florida, Michigan, Indiana, North Dakota, Minnesota, New Mexico, Texas and California as well as international participants from England, Poland and Israel. Eligible participants include children, adolescents and adults diagnosed with Sertoli leydig cell tumor, Sertoli cell tumor, juvenile granulosa cell tumors and other rare ovarian tumors.

Starting in January 2013, the Int'l OTST Registry will enroll male participants with rare testicular stromal tumors. For more information please visit our web page: www.otstregistry.org or talk with Dr. Schultz. The Int'l OTST Registry is a collaborative effort with Massachusetts General Hospital and Children's National Medical Center made possible by our sponsors: St. Baldrick's Foundation, Pine Tree Apple Tennis Classic Foundation and Hyundai Hope on Wheels. Thank you sponsors, collaborators and especially our invaluable participants for a successful first year and a hopeful future!