As healthy human beings we do not realize how blessed we are and often times do not take the time to think about those who are not doing well. However, on Saturday March 9th, Taylor Swift "made a special visit to Omaha’s Children’s Hospital & Medical Center to visit a young fan who’s been battling cancer." This is not the first time that Taylor has done something like this before. In the past, she has visited cancer patients, has taken fans to award shows as her date, and has even been to proms with her fans that are cancer patients. It is no surprise, but she is known for practicing philanthropy amongst her fellow country-pop artists. The ten year old girl that Taylor vistied is Lauren Hacker "and her family and friends have been lobbying for her to meet Swift via a social media campaign." Being stuck in a hospital room has to get old and pretty lonely. Instead of being selfish, Taylor takes the time to visit patients like Lauren because she has sympathy for them.
Pediatric patients are very special to me because my best friend has spent a lot of time at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee because she was born with a liver disease, Biliary Atresia. My best friend, Lauren, had her liver transplant in July of 2001. I remember being so excited to go visit her at Le Bonheur because we missed each other so much. I know she missed her family and friends a whole lot, but she was appreciative when she did have guests. Being a pediatric patient was so important to Lauren, that she asked for teddy bears for her birthday one year, just so she could give them to the children at Le Bonheur. Lauren was very thankful and humbled by being able to do that for all those kids at her children's hospital. She understood that they liked visitors just as much as she did.
My friend, Lauren, and Taylor Swift care enough for kids like Lauren Hacker and other children's hospital patients. Their philanthropic acts are examples of how we all should be. I am thankful for people like that, but surely not as much as the patients.
