Smith is now a teacher and coach at Commerce ISD Middle School, where he is driven by a desire to educate his students and athletes about the importance of giving back. And what better way to do that than through donating PrayerBears?

"I like to teach kids about more than just school subjects," Smith explained. "We talk about philanthropy and what these bears mean to the children who receive them. This is just a small way I can involve others in giving back to such a wonderful cause."

The PrayerBear Program at Cook Children's gives admitted patients soft teddy bears for them to hold and cuddle. These bears offer a sense of comfort. They’re a gentle reminder that provides warmth and companionship during a difficult time. Smith specifically remembers the first two PrayerBears he received. These initial bears were handmade by a local church group, and he still has these two bears to this day. Having experienced the comfort of these bears, Smith has a strong appreciation for them. Holding a PrayerBear brings patients peace and reassurance that they are not alone.

Robin Brazell, interfaith ministry specialist and PrayerBear Program coordinator, was deeply touched and incredibly grateful for Smith’s donation. Brazell says this donation is extra special. The PrayerBear program would not exist without donors like Smith.

”What Adam has done is choose to give back following his own experience as a Cook Children's patient,” said Brazell.

Fernando Acosta Jr., M.D., neurologist and associate medical director of Movement Disorders at Cook Children’s, was Smith’s doctor who he credits for saving his life. The two now have a close friendship. 

“I've loved watching him grow over the years, and I'm privileged that, I'm a part of it,” Dr. Acosta said. “I can't imagine I could be any more proud of him if he was my own son.”

Thank you Adam Smith and Commerce ISD for this generous donation! 

In December, Sandra Peak, M.D., a pediatrician at Cook Children’s Pediatrics Lewisville – Castle Hills, challenged her fellow pediatric offices in the Denton/Collin county area to collect bears (known as Prayer Bears) throughout the month. 

Doctors at each participating primary care office posted a callout on their social media accounts and the community answered in a big way.

A total of 1,821 Prayer Bears were delivered to Cook Children’s Medical Center – Prosper today during the hospital’s first birthday celebration. The bears will be given to patients as a source of comfort and encouragement during their hospital stay. 

Cook Children’s Medical Center – Prosper opened its doors on January 9, 2023. It’s the second hospital for Cook Children’s, which has served children and families for nearly 106 years.

A special shoutout is also in line for the following for helping count, sort and categorize the bears:

• Sarah Varughese (a junior volunteer)
• Sherry Zanca  
• Jay Stamper (Dr. Peak’s husband) 

Here are the Cook Children’s primary care offices that participated: 

Celina

Allen

Prosper trail 

Prosper Lakewood 

Windsong

North Denton 

South Denton 

Little Elm 

Aubrey 

West Frisco 

Frisco 

Collin County 

McKinney 

Lake Forest 

Lewisville 

Carrollton 

Plano 

Parkwood 

Windhaven 

Plano Legacy - winner (290 bears collected) (Rhonda Merchant, M.D. and Sireesha Mutyala, M.D.) 

Runners up: 

Second Place - McKinney (240)

Third Place -  North Denton (236)

In this episode of Raising Joy, we discuss a new peer-to-peer support program that is underway in Cook Children's Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). Chaplain Amanda Payne Lindsay and Katelyn Terry, RN, join us to talk about the program's goals, how it works, and the impact it's having on PICU staff.

The PICU can be a traumatic environment for health care workers, and this program is aimed at limiting the impact of stress, depression, anxiety, and burnout. The program trains appointed PICU employees to serve as supportive peers to lean on in times of need.

Listen to learn how they started the peer-to-peer support program and why similar programs could benefit workplaces of all kinds.

Raising Joy is part of Cook Children’s Health Care System’s Joy Campaign, a communications initiative aimed at preventing youth suicides. For more information about the Joy Campaign, visit cookchildrens.org/joy.

New episodes of the Raising Joy podcast will be available each Tuesday. It is currently available on all major streaming platforms including Apple, Spotify and Google Podcasts.

By Jean Yaeger

Splashes of water flow with a soothing sound for those who seek contemplation and peace at the Cook Children’s Medical Center – Prosper chapel.

Sunlight enters softly through pastel flourishes on the windows. A table displays the Bible, the Quran, the Tanakh, and a few children’s books. Slips of paper are available if someone wants to write a prayer request. Visitors may also use the prayer rugs folded in a basket.

The Prosper Medical Center opened in January 2023, and since then its nondenominational chapel has offered a respite for people of any religious background or no particular faith. You won’t see fixtures resembling the interior of a church, temple or mosque. That’s because the chapel was designed to be an inclusive and nurturing environment for all people. The Prosper Chapel printed glass wall installation features the replicated painting Touching Petals© by the artist Vara Kamin.*

“It’s a sacred space for everybody to feel seen, to feel welcome, to feel valued no matter what their faith tradition or their life journey may be,” said Jennifer Hayes, M. Div., Cook Children’s Director of Spiritual Care.

While it’s not for public use, the chapel is open all hours for patients admitted to the Prosper Medical Center and their families. Hospital employees frequently stop in too. There’s a sense of tranquility and rest -- for the body, mind and soul.   

“The employees especially enjoy the beautiful ambient sound from the water feature. It creates a space to retreat and reflect or to simply take some time to recharge,” said Amanda Payne Lindsay, M.Div., a chaplain at the Prosper Medical Center. “It’s really beautiful when I come in the chapel and see that both the prayer mats and the Bibles have been used.  We offer a place for everyone to honor their faith.”

Imagination and Collaboration

With the help of Cook Children’s patients, McKinney artist Jim Wilson is creating a custom mixed medium artwork to be hung on a blank wall of the chapel. Child Life specialists handed out “Chapel Art Bags” with supplies that patients used to paint, sketch or write words that will help shape the commissioned artwork. For inspiration, the bags contained a few prompts:   

• What is God like?
• What is love?
• What questions do you have for God?
• What makes you feel better?

An 11-year-old, for instance, drew heart-shaped bubbles blown from a wand. Another submission features the wisdom of a 3-year-old: “Doctors help me feel brave. Daddy and Mama make me feel brave.”

Wilson is working to incorporate the patients’ contributions – plus maps, photos and materials that reflect Cook Children’s history -- into an abstract collage roughly 4.5 x 6.5 feet in size. Wilson plans to cut up the papers, glue the fragments to a panel, add paint, sand it, and apply an acrylic finish. He envisions a cohesive tapestry assembled from many parts.   

“Hopefully there will be a lightness to it, a joy infused into it, peace and serenity,” he said.

His collaborators – the children – will be able to see glimpses of their efforts in the end result, which Wilson expects to complete by the end of 2023. He says it’s an honor to produce an installation that may help console and support future chapel-goers who face circumstances of grief or fear.

“I feel a sense of responsibility,” Wilson said. “If I can be part of a team that makes what these people are going through a little bit easier or a little bit more peaceful, then I’ve been a part of a wonderful thing.”

Hayes predicts the chapel centerpiece will showcase the track record of generosity and respect in the culture at Cook Children’s. “And the hope that our goodness will continue to positively impact our community,” she said.

Spirituality through Connections

The Spiritual Care team at Cook Children’s has the training and resources to engage with patients at every age in meaningful ways that reflect their faith traditions. The job encompasses a calling to listen with kindness, give guidance, serve as an advocate, and tend to hurting spirits.  They don’t judge or try to convert anyone.

Often, the first contact the Spiritual Care department makes with families is through the beloved PrayerBear program. Volunteers gave away almost 17,000 PrayerBears at Cook Children’s Medical Center – Fort Worth in 2022. The gift of a PrayerBear encourages and comforts patients during their stay in the hospital.

Hayes points out that playfulness is key to building rapport with a young child. A chaplain might speak in a silly voice pretending to be the PrayerBear. And the chaplain finds out what’s important to the child. She recalled a time she helped a constipated patient pray about … well, pooping.

“You have to be willing to step out of what some people would deem typical clerical behavior,” she said. “You have to be able to laugh. You have to be able to play games. Because if you can't tend to their spirit without using overtly religious language in the small things, then they're not going to trust you in those big things.”

Teenage patients might feel angry or ask hard questions related to their health challenges. Hayes said the chaplains strive to help teens process their emotions and find hope. Spiritual Care also serves parents and siblings, if desired.

For those who have no specific faith tradition or religious beliefs, the Spiritual Care team can minister to the universal need for connection and community. “Every single person we encounter has that thread of humanity,” she said.

Hayes wants to bust the myth that hospital chaplains push religion on people or condemn those who don’t adhere to a particular faith.  

“We're kind of like the scaffolding of buildings," Hayes said. “We’re there to support you when you feel like you're falling down. And if that's what you need in that moment, then we're going to do everything that we can to be that scaffolding and to uphold you.”

Editor's Note: *S.I.T.E.™ (Sensory Immersion Transition Experience™) by Vara Kamin provides in-person immersive artistic service in healing spaces designed to reduce over-stimulation and engage the relaxation response. S.I.T.E ™ is a transformational tool and experience that invites individuals to connect with their innate healing capacities through self-reflection and the cultivation of insight.

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