The first Radio Lollipop Olympics took place this year and lasted longer than anyone expected. It started with the “Radio Lollipop Olympics Bash” on May 30th. The party was a great success. It allowed volunteers to meet each other and spend some quality time together. It was followed by the Radio Lollipop Olympic games, which took place on May 31st at Tropical Park.
The games consisted of four teams: “The Incredibles” from Terrific Tuesday, “Weapons of Mass Destruction” from Wacky Wednesday, “Boom Boom Pow” from Thrilling Thursday and “The Icantbelieveables” from Super Saturday. The events scheduled were Flag Football, Dodgeball, and Kickball. After playing flag football for four hours, the games were sadly interrupted by rain. .
Thanks to the weather, volunteers were able to meet again on July 19 to finish the Olympic games. Dodgeball and Kickball were the two events of the day. The award ceremony followed the games. “The Icanbelievables” from Super Saturday took home the trophy. “It’s not about competition. It’s about becoming a team, which hopefully will later become a family,” said Lucia Schneegans-Puentes, a Super Saturday volunteer.

Each team had a Most Valuable Player who won a beautiful medal. Kathy Napuri, Natalie Eguizabal, Andrew Geffner, and David Berry were the MVPs. Andrew Geffner not only won Most Valuable Player on his team, but also won Most Valuable Player overall.
The Radio Lollipop Olympic games allowed a large group of great individuals to interact. Even though volunteers were competing against each other, they became closer than ever. “I really enjoyed the first ever Radio Lollipop Olympics because we got to interact with members from the rest of the teams and have fun in the process”, said Melissa Ruiz-Lau, a Thrilling Thursday volunteer.

Tuesday’s team did not have enough team members, so they combined with players from Wednesday’s team. They called themselves the Terrific Wednesdays. Labake Ajayi, a Terrific Tuesday member said, “Although we were divided within our respective teams, we united as a whole in competing against each other from different teams, sharing memorable experiences and always laughing.”

She added, “Maybe there was only one official team winner, but all the teams gained friends, ate great food and spent quality time as a group. In the end we all became winners.”

This wonderful event is sure to come back next year, providing a great venue for volunteers from all teams to practice good teamwork and sportsmanship in hopes of bringing everyone just a little bit closer in the process.

Players and coaches from the University of Miami baseball team hit a homerun with their visit to Radio Lollipop in October. Singing songs, visiting patients, and announcing the night’s winners were all in the night’s lineup.

“I had a great night, it’s a great feeling to be an influence in someone’s life,” said player Sam Robinson. Another player, Erick Erickson, also expressed the importance to take part in such a great opportunity.
“I think the players did a great job getting the kids to cheer up and really get involved in our show,” said Wacky Wednesday volunteer Miguel Garcia. The team took part in handing out craft supplies, picking out prizes, and left great memories not only with the kids, but with the volunteers as well.

“They really got the kids motivated and it was nice to see how many smiles they were able to get from kids who really needed it,” said Thrilling Thursday team member Lydia Del Pino. The play of the day came when the baseball players, volunteers, and kids got together to sing “You’ve got a friend in me.” Indeed the UM players showed that Radio Lollipop and the kids at Miami Children’s Hospital truly do have a friend in the University of Miami.

Radio Lollipop would like to thank Sam Robinson, Tom Powers, Chris Hernandez, Eric Erickson, Ryan Perry, Steven Ewing, Kevin Youst, and coach Jim Morris for stopping by for a great night of fun.

Twice a year, Macy’s holds a “Shop For a Cause” event, where they give organizations such as Radio Lollipop the opportunity to keep 100% of the proceeds from their coupons. These five dollar coupons are sold to customers prior to the ‘Shop for a Cause’ date. Customers then receive a percentage off their purchases. This year we participated in April and October, raising a total of $2,500.

Nettie Lamoureux, a mother of three, said that she was grateful to know her money was going toward helping improve the lives of sick children.
“As a mother, I know how difficult it must be not only for the sick child, but also their families during some very stressful situations. I feel very happy that I can somehow help to make sure that their experience at Miami Children’s Hospital is as enjoyable as possible.”

Radio Lollipop thanks Macy’s and all our supporters for making this event so successful. We look forward to continuing with the “Shop for a Cause” program next spring.