Girl Scouts, FDNY team up to bring cheer to Maimonides pediatric cancer patients

December 23, 2024 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

Scouts serve chicken nuggets, French fries, pizza, and cupcakes at Maimonides’ Cancer Center holiday celebration. Photo by Anat Gerstein, Inc.

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BOROUGH PARK — PATIENTS AT MAIMONIDES CANCER CENTER last week gathered with each other, their families and their medical care teams to celebrate the holiday season, with heroes from a local Girl Scout troop and a Bay Ridge firehouse helping make the festivities possible. The party marked the 13th year of this annual Maimonides tradition, featuring a photo booth, a face painter, delicious food served by sixth- and seventh-grade Girl Scouts (Cadette level) from Dyker Heights and Gravesend and appearances by Looney Louie the clown and firetrucks from FDNY Engine 241/Ladder Co. 109 in Bay Ridge. The planning started during November, when patients submitted holiday wish lists up to $100. Maimonides Health staff members then donated toys and gifts to fulfill the wish lists. During last Thursday’s event, Santa distributed the toys and gifts to the patients. Additional toys for children to select were donated by Toys for Hospitalized Children.

“Through this event, young people and families can experience the magic of the holiday season,” said Shari Feinberg, nurse practitioner and team leader of the Hematology/Oncology Team at Maimonides Health, who commended the Girl Scouts who volunteered their time to serve food and Maimonides Health clinical staff who donated toys and gifts to fulfill kids’ holiday wishes.

Dr. Ludovico Guarini, M.D., chief of Pediatric Hematology & Oncology at Maimonides Health, said that clinic staff and families have nurtured bonds; each child, parent and caregiver is warmly embraced and assured that, “even in difficult times, they are never alone.”