Patient & Staff Stories

The C.A.R.E. Channel Story Project

Every week, and almost every day, we get phone calls, emails, and letters from patients and family members with touching stories about how The C.A.R.E. Channel helped them during their hospital stay. Nurses, chaplains, and other staff also regularly share positive feedback about The C.A.R.E. Channel.

Some comments are posted on our website. But, a few years ago, we launched The C.A.R.E. Channel Story Project to capture a few of these stories on video as well.  We are grateful to those who agreed to talk to us on camera about their hospital experience:

When he heard that his 8-week old son Steven Jr. needed a liver transplant, it shook Lt. Colonel Steven Coffee’s world. He and his wife had never envisioned a 42-day hospital stay for their first child in the first few months of his life. After a successful transplant, it was hard to watch Steven Jr. struggle with being weened off pain medication. Then one night, they found The C.A.R.E. Channel. Lt. Col. Steven Coffee After 15 hours of surgery to remove a tumor the size of two golf balls behind Shanna’s left eye, the singer/songwriter didn’t know if she’d able to see, hear, or talk again. After being moved from the ICU, she thought she was dreaming when she woke one day hearing beautiful music and seeing nature video. She was grateful to the hospital for providing this programming because it was the only thing she watched for a solid week during her recovery. Shanna O’Brien In the hospital for two months for a bleeding problem, Fred, a long-time record producer who had devoted his life to music, found The C.A.R.E. Channel. It changed his hospital experience. After discharge, three years went by and he was hoping to find it again somehow. Then, he ran into C.A.R.E. Channel Executive Producer Dallas Smith, whom he hadn’t seen in 30 years, at a film screening. Fred Catero When twins Oliver and Skye were born prematurely at Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital, they spent months in the NICU. After six months, Oliver came home, but Skye remained hospitalized. As the doctors began the long process to withdraw the narcotics that were part of Skye’s treatment, parents Seyi and David McLelland discovered that watching The C.A.R.E. Channel helped distract and calm her. Oliver and Skye At age 16, Matt was an average teenager. He went to school, had homework, and spent most of his free time hanging out with friends at a local skate park. But a few years ago, after a glorious day of skateboarding, Matt went to bed with a simple headache and woke up paralyzed. Matt Hankey After giving birth to her second child, Courtney Smith was having trouble sleeping in the hospital because of construction noise and people talking. Sobbing, she asked the nurses if she could check-out, but they wouldn’t let her. She went back to her room, turned on the TV, and found The C.A.R.E. Channel. It instantly calmed her. Courtney Smith An active, healthy 65-year old, Theresa was distressed to learn that the aortic valve in her heart needed to be replaced. The C.A.R.E. Channel, which she discovered when she went in for her angiogram prior to surgery, helped soothe her fears about what was going to happen and calm her while she was recovering. Theresa LoMonaco While fixing flowers at church, 89-year old Dorcas O’Neil fell and broke her hip. In the hospital, she discovered The C.A.R.E. Channel, and loved it so much that she bought DVDs to watch at home. Dorcas O'Neil

If you’re interested in being a part of The Story Project, please contact us.

Read other patient and staff testimonials.