It is a shame we all seem to forget to mark the little box to display our signature lines. I am very pleased with mine. It reveals one of the Great Secrets of Freemasonry. Once a year or so I try to start a thread about it to pass the word around.
The Shrine Hospitals for Sick Children are a wonderful thing to know about. Please feel free to take notes. Why Back When they were hospitals for crippled children. When Polio was conquered they branched out into other specialties. Nowadays, they specialize in the treatment of burns and orthopedic injuries. Still, no disease or condition is out of bounds.
This is a chain of 22 hospitals in the US, Mexico and Canada, all of them completely modern and well equipped, but all lacking a billing department. There is never any fee for treatment.
The requirements is that the patient must be under 18 years of age and be treatable. Race, religion and relation to a Mason are never an issue. Local Shrine Temples (and other Masonic organizations) often provide free transportation to and from the hospitals for evaluations and treatment.
Write the phone number down someplace. You may someday meet a child who needs help.
When I was a young girl, and horse crazy, I read all those Marguerite Henry books. One was about a woman, who when she was a child, was treated for her polio at a Shriner’s hospital. That was the first time I ever heard of them. Truly a wonderful institution.
When I was younger, I went through a Ray Stevens fanboy stage. Now I can’t hear or read the word “Shriner” without getting that infernal song stuck in my head.
“Hello, Operator, give me room 321, please, thank you Hello, Noble Lumpkin? This here is the illustrious Potentate. I said it’s the illustrious Potentate. The illustrious…Coy! Dad blame it! This here’s Bubba! Coy, why an’t you at the parade?! What?! Well, how’d you get that big Harley up there in your room? What?! I can’t hear ya’ Coy! Quit revvin’ it up, son! Turn it off! Listen I just want you to know one thing. You have embarrassed us all, the whole Hahira Delegation! Now I’ll see you at the banquet tonight, son. And you be there Coy, you hear me? Black tie! Seven o’clock! Be there! And Coy, don’t answer the phone, udden udden! Mercy”
I’ve been aware of the Shriners efforts for some time (luckily I’ve never had to use them). When you say “treatable”, do you mean “curable”? or will they work with kids who are pretty much hopeless as well?
Also, we have a kid here in town who was recently mauled by a couple evil dogs. Her face is severely damaged. Do the Shriners work with those types of injuries? I know the family needs financial help. The poor kid was collecting money for her own charity group when the attack happened. Our bank raised a lousy $300, which I’m sure will cover, like, band-aids or something.
“When we get back to Hahira, you can just turn in your ring AND your tie tack, 'cause Coy? You are OUT of the Shrine. That’s right! You gonna have to leave town, boy!..Whattaya mean, you ‘might join the Hell’s Angels?’”
Yes, the Shriners Hospitals are wonderful things, something I can testify to personally. I went to school with a girl who was born with a clubfoot and other congenital problems. A series of operations and other treatments at a Shriner Hospital gave her the opportunity to walk and run and have some semblance of a normal life. Her parents could have in no way afforded this treatment without the help of the Shriners.
The bona fides of the Shriners Hospitals is not in doubt here.
However, please, Please PLEASE before you put your ad for helpful social services or fundraising or charitable or other philanthropic situations on the board, remember that it’s always best to run your public service message by board management BEFORE you make your post. We most always allow such listings and in fact encourage anything that makes the world a better place or brightens the corner where you are – and this certainly qualifies – but we would prefer to authorize it before you place it on the board instead of having to chase after you after the fact. Like now. Great idea, Paul – not so great way to go about it.
You a Shriner, Paul? I’ve forgotten what degree one must be to join the Shriners. They do good work, don’t they? At one point they had the only children’s burn hospital — a whole charitable facility just for that!
(Gosh, I post about the Shrine hospitals every year or so, often enough to be helpful, and rarely enough not to be a pest. I thought it was becoming a SDMB tradition.)
(Sigh.)
As for facial injuries, I do not know. Why not call the number to make an enquiry? You can call as a first step without telling the family. Please tell me how it works out.
As for joining the Shrine, you used to have to hold the 32nd degree of the York or Scottish Rites. That requirement is now dropped. Any Master Mason may join. The hats are extra however.
And don’t we have this little set-to when you do and don’t bother to ask up first? Just ask us in advance, like we make everyone else do with their PSAs.
It’s a great charity and the Shriners do good work, we want to encourage that. Let us do that and follow the procedure, dammit.
I followed the links and ended up staring at the Walking, Talking, Shriner’s Mascot, Fez Head Fred. Fez Head Fred is “a man-sized fez with a four foot tassel and a friendly smile.”
I’ll drink a toast to the Shriners, next time I’m out.
I believe that a Shriner’s hospital will help with reconstructive surgery Kalhoun. Don’t quote me as fact, but I know it’s a part of what goes on with burn victims and I’m pretty sure I’ve heard of cases where they helped after injuries such as you described.
Speaking of Hahira, I once spoke at the Hahira Lion’s Club meeting. Hahira is a part of the territory I cover at work. Y’all are just green with envy aren’t ya!
Since Homebrew is such a big fan, here’s a guide to Hahira, GA especially for him. It’s all a part of my sneaky plan to get him to plan a vacation to Hahira so I can go over and kidnap him.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread.
I’m pretty sure that last time Paul in Saudi posted something like this, I took the opportunity to personally thank him and any other Shriners on the board.
But just in case I didn’t, or if there are any new ones, THANK YOU!
My son was treated at a Shriner’s hospital for a 59 degree curvature in his spine. Spinal fusion, Harrington rods, the whole gambit. Plus, he had an extra rib on one side which was removed. His was by no means an easy or routine surgery. But neither was it the most difficult they do.
He was in the hospital for two weeks or so, and they were amazing people. From the nurses and doctors to the janitors and playgroup, everyone was positive and upbeat and just seemed to genuinely like their job. The efficiency and speed available to professionals with no red tape is stunning (because it’s all one “billing” center, if you need more tests or x-rays, they just send you down the hall with a note for Phyllis - no need to make another appointment or wait for hours).
We would never have been able to afford his treatment, and our insurance wouldn’t cover it as a pre-existing condition. Contrary to what they told me, Shriner’s even covered the cost of an MRI that had to be performed at another hospital (they said we’d have to pay for it, but we got the bill in the mail marked PAID - SHRINER’S.)
One thing that I found interesting: one of the nurses told me that some years, they have trouble finding enough patients! Apparently, people think there are long waiting lists or assume their kid won’t be eligible. This can be a big problem for a not-for-profit, as they have to use all their funds or risk losing their NFP status. So please, if you know someone who needs it, do refer them.
