A champion of children’s cancer care will pass the baton

Frank Haskell EVAN WILLIAMS / FLORIDA WEEKLY During an ordeal with breast cancer, Barbara Haskell was awed by the bravery and grace of children who contend with cancer treatments. Her parents, a retired sales executive named Frank Haskell, and his wife Betty, were listening closely. That was 15 years ago.

“She died in Michigan,” Mr. Haskell said. “And it was a very, very cold day. Instead of having flowers for the funeral, we decided to put the money to better use.”

In her memory, and as an antidote to sorrow, Mr. Haskell invested the money to help the children his late daughter admired. Now that fund, named Barbara’s Friends, has bloomed into something “more than we could have dreamt,” he said. “We originally thought, if we could raise $100,000, we’d be very happy. And we’ve now surpassed $8.7 million.”

As a result, Southwest Florida families no longer need to drive to St. Petersburg to treat children with cancer or blood disorders. More than 3,000 sick children have been treated since the fund was used to start a Children’s Cancer Care Program at The Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida in 1997.

Mr. Haskell’s fundraising prowess — he was a top salesman and executive for an adding machine company starting in the 1950s, before moving to computer sales in Dallas — has helped build the program.

Through careful planning by Lee Memorial Health System and the Barbara’s Friends board, the fund has been used to create a world-class pediatric cancer care program. Mr. Haskell, 80, will step down as chairman on Jan. 31 during the 15th Anniversary Celebration at Miromar Design Center in Estero. He’ll continue to serve as an adviser to Barbara’s Friends.

“We want to make sure this program is carried on for eternity,” he said.

Located in LMHS’s sprawling HealthPark facility in South Fort Myers, the Barbara’s Friends Pediatric Hematology & Oncology Center is one of nine children’s cancer centers in Florida. It’s one of the few that has a separate therapy wing for families, with a full-time psychologist; and the only one in the United States that has a dedicated music room for children — complete with a musical therapist, guitars, keyboards, drums, amps, and soundproof walls so drummers won’t disturb parents using the medical library next door.

The cancer program at HealthPark has its own pediatric pharmacy. There is a teacher to help keep kids catch up on schoolwork. The place would seem almost like an innocent, well-appointed nursery if it weren’t for the medical staff and other giveaways. The walls of one unit are painted with underwater sea creatures. There are playrooms, video games and a big toy box. There is also a kid-sized hat tree in the lobby, where children who lost their hair during chemotherapy treatments hang their favorite stocking and baseball caps.

Mr. Haskell is proud that the program shares a distinction with St. Jude Hospital, known as one of the finest pediatric cancer centers in the world. Although the program at HealthPark is on a much smaller scale, both are audited by California-based Children’s Oncology Group to help develop procedures.

“Here we are in little Fort Myers, getting the same protocols as St. Jude,” Mr. Haskell said.

In another room of the cancer center, lifesize paintings of Boston Red Sox players run and swing across the walls. Mr. Haskell has been a Red Sox fan since he was a boy, growing up in Boston. Now he runs the control room, including the electronic message board and P.A. system, at City of Palms Park in Fort Myers in the spring, when his team is in town. He’s held the job for 18 years, since the ballpark was built.

Now, as Mr. Haskell’s retirement nears, Barbara’s Friends will soon embark on its most ambitious fundraising campaign ever. The group is setting out to raise $150 million for a tower with about 154 new beds for children.

Currently, about half the children treated for cancer at The Children’s Hospital come from Lee County, 40 percent from Collier, and the rest from Charlotte, Hendry and Glades counties. But the financial support doesn’t reflect where the patients come from. Nearly 90 percent of the $8.7 million raised so far has come from Lee County entities, companies and individuals.

“Collier County has to step up to the plate to help us with that otherwise we’ll never build a tower,” Mr. Haskell said.

One way or another, he plans to see those funds raised, which is good news for Southwest Florida families.

“I’ve been a salesman all my life,” he said. “So one of the things that’s been helpful to me — If everybody said ‘yes’ when you’re selling something, you wouldn’t need a salesman. It’s when someone says ‘no,’ that’s when you need a salesman. That’s how it was with Barbara’s Friends. I don’t take ‘no’ easily.” 

If you go

>>What: Barbara’s Friends 15th Anniversary
Celebration
>>When: Jan. 31, noon to 3:30 p.m.
>>Where: Miromar Design Center,
10800 Corkscrew Road, Estero
>>Cost: $100 donation per person
>>Details: Mimosas, brunch, musical
performances, a charity auction and
more, emceed by Kellie Burns and
Craig Wolf of NBC-2.
>>Info: Call 985-3550