State’s First Lady Honors Childhood Survivors

By Nate Hinkel

Arkansas First Lady Ginger Beebe
Flutter the Clown, Arkansas first lady Ginger Beebe and granddaughter Alexandria celebrated at UAMS’ first ever childhood cancer awareness event.
Lana Rahn, left, helped kick off UAMS’ new ROC Stars program in support of children who have received radiation therapy at the UAMS Radiation Oncology Center.
The children in attendance got to meet Arkansas first lady Ginger Beebe (left) and create a keepsake canvas.
In July 2012, UAMS became the sole provider of radiation therapy on campus.

On Sept. 30, Arkansas’ first lady Ginger Beebe joined the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) to celebrate with children and their families at UAMS’ first ever childhood cancer awareness event.

The event also kicked off UAMS’ new ROC Stars program in support of children who have received radiation therapy at the UAMS Radiation Oncology Center.

“When our granddaughter, Alexandria, was diagnosed with cancer, our lives changed forever,” Mrs. Beebe said. “Watching her go through that experience is one of the most difficult things we’ve ever faced. It is such a blessing to have her healthy and happy again. That is my wish for all children living with cancer.”

Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute Director Peter Emanuel welcomed guests to the event. He praised the young cancer patients and their families for their courage in their fight against “life-threatening battles that would challenge men and women of any age.”

The children in attendance had the chance to meet Mrs. Beebe and create a keepsake canvas, where their handprint was placed alongside the first lady’s. Assisting the children in putting paint on their hands and making the handprints were Mrs. Beebe, Lana Rahn, wife of UAMS Chancellor Dan Rahn, and Carla Emanuel, wife of Peter Emanuel. Handprints of all the childhood survivors also were placed on a large mural to be hung in the UAMS Radiation Oncology Center, where each child was treated. Former patients also received a UAMS ROC Star T-shirt.

In July 2012, UAMS became the sole provider of radiation therapy on its campus. The center treats adult patients of the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute and children seen by UAMS physicians at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

“It’s nice to take the opportunity to honor and celebrate with these children who have been through so much. Their courage is an inspiration for our staff and their families,” Vaneerat Ratanatharathorn, M.D., professor and chair of the UAMS Department of Radiation Oncology, said.

The children also had the chance to play on an inflatable jump house and slide, enjoy snacks, be entertained by Flutter the Clown and dance to the music of volunteer musicians, Circuit Judge-elect Morgan “Chip” Welch, UAMS Psychiatric Research institute employee Cliff Hudson and Rick Martin, lead singer for the band Tragikly White.