VALHALLA, N.Y. (August 2021) — Seven year-old Camryn Kellam who is doing well after undergoing a stem cell transplant during the height of the pandemic last year has been named an ambassador for Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital’s Go the Distance Walk.
The Fishkill girl was recently cheered on by family and representatives from Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital during a special ceremony where she was presented with an official sash designating her as a hospital ambassador for the 17th Annual Go the Distance Walk. The annual fundraiser for the Hudson Valley’s children’s hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth), usually draws thousands of participants, but this year for the safety of all it will be conducted virtually. Families and organizations eager to participate are encouraged to walk a one-mile course of their choosing between now and November 7.
Camryn was diagnosed with Sickle Cell Disease three weeks after birth. In March of 2020, she was diagnosed with Moyamoya Disease, which is a narrowing of blood vessels in the brain. Complications from the two conditions necessitated a stem cell transplant and her oldest sister was her life-changing donor. As one of the Go the Distance Walk and Family Fun Day ambassadors, Camryn will help represent the more than 30,000 seriously ill and injured children cared for by Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital annually.
Those who wish to create a team and support the advanced care mission of Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital should call 914.493.2575 or visit Give.WMCHealth.org/GTD21 for team-building and fundraising instructions.
About Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital
Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital is the children’s hospital for New York’s Hudson Valley region and Fairfield County, Connecticut.Located in Valhalla, NY, this 136-bed advanced pediatrics facility cares for the region’s most seriously ill and injured children including those in need of cardiac surgery, neurosurgery, hematology and oncology treatments, organ transplants and other specialty pediatric services. Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital is also home to the area’s only Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Level I pediatric trauma and burn care programs and its Regional Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. For more information on Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, interested parties can visit WestchesterMedicalCenter.org/MFCH or follow the hospital at Facebook.com/MFCHatWMC and Twitter.com/MFCHatWMC.
About Westchester Medical Center Health Network
The Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth) is a 1,700-bed healthcare system headquartered in Valhalla, New York, with 10 hospitals on eight campuses spanning 6,200 square miles of the Hudson Valley. WMCHealth employs more than 12,000 people and has nearly 3,000 attending physicians. From Level 1, Level 2 and Pediatric Trauma Centers, the region’s only acute care children’s hospital, an academic medical center, several community hospitals, dozens of specialized institutes and centers, skilled nursing, assisted living facilities, homecare services and one of the largest mental health systems in New York State, today WMCHealth is the pre-eminent provider of integrated healthcare in the Hudson Valley. For more information about WMCHealth, visit WMCHealth.org.