We visit with Kristi Flanagan Villar from the Masonic Children's Hospital, Masonic Cancer Center and the Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain. She gives us a fascinating update one the progress being made at one of our most meaningful partnerships.
We visit with Kristi Flanagan Villar from the Masonic Children's Hospital, Masonic Cancer Center and the Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain. She gives us a fascinating update one the progress being made at one of our most meaningful partnerships.
this is another one of those crossover events between Minnesota Masonic Histories and Mysteries, and the Kindness Chronicles. I am flying solo today. Steve Brown and Kevin Gorg are. Out on assignment. Uh, actually the truth of the matter is this is one of those days where, uh, our guest is so popular and so busy that we had to record on an off day. Um, so I skipped going to church tonight. No, that's not fair. I didn't skip going to church, but I am very grateful to have, uh, Christie Flanagan Velar. Do, do you go by Christie Flanagan? Velar professionally, or. In every part of your life, do something. You know, John, that is a great question and I too skip church tonight. So just that we're, we're all Thank you. Thank you. Confessing the truth. Yes. Um, funny story. So my sister-in-law is Christie Valar and as she likes to say, she's the real Christie Valar. Oh. Um, so that's where I did retain the plan again, just cause there could be confusion. And Christie is actually a rockstar softball coach, um, for, um, Santa. So, oh, there was a chance that we could cross over cause she's been in the collegiate softball world for, gosh, close to two decades now. So chances are you could see our emails crossed. So that was the other motivation is to retain the plan again. And it's a great Irish name, you know, paying tribute to St. Paul and absolutely that side of the river. What kind of a softball coach are you? Just while we're on the topic, Well, considering I don't have a lot of hand eye coordination, I lack in that area. I would say I'm an individual athlete. I, I love running skating and driving my children around to all of their sports activities. That's very nice. And I'm imagining that the Christie, the real Christie Velar is, uh, probably not great at raising money for pediatrics and cancer purposes. You know what's so funny? I, she would probably agree yes. Okay, good. She would agree. But it's been very fun to share some strategies and insight. Cause obviously she does have to do some fundraising for their softball program. But it's certainly a mission that I love to support. And I think, you know, she actually really likes our mission too. But obviously her day job is supporting a softball program in comparison. Well, that's just more pediatrics. Lovely. Christie, Why are we chatting today? Tell us about what you do for work. You know what, John? I would say it is around aligning transformational passion for philanthropic transformation. and I think that if there was one word to sum up what I get to do each day, it's joy. And I think that I am so fortunate and so privileged. I've been in this field now for close to 20 years, and raising money for children's health, for cancer, for the medical school, for the University of Minnesota has been a game changer in my life personally too. And I think that when you get to work with patients, families, some of the most world renowned researchers that are so close to finding new cures for some of these really horrendous diseases, it is, it is an amazing opportunity to help really play a very small role and garner greater support from the community to be able to do that. So I get to really live under the guise of joy each day as we bring about transformational impact in children's health and. Well, that response was so lovely and sincere. It prohibits me from making fun of the many syllable words you used at the very beginning. That's just lovely. It almost feels like you've been asked that question before. But I bet you it's never been answered with such enthusiasm. No. For those of you that don't know, I have had the privilege Yes. Privilege of working, with Christie for, uh, quite a few years now. Minnesota Masonic Charities, supports. the work that, uh, that Christie and her colleagues are doing at the University of Minnesota at the cancer center and at the Masonic Children's Hospital and now the Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain. Um, I know, is that something that is in your, uh, wheelhouse or is that outside of the Christie Christie land? No, that's my wheelhouse too. And if anything, I think that's, that's been a new wheelhouse for all of us. And one of the things that I'm most proud of, I think the. Stepped up at such a critical time in child and adolescent brain health, it really helped us be able to launch this vision into a reality. So the Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain truly is the first ofs in the world in the way that we unite. Just the most field of research with the clinical intervention, the community aspect that we offer and the education so that we can train the next generation of specialists is, is really not being done in the way that we've been able to do it across country. And thing that I would say about that too. Mental health is at such a a crisis point right now, and the Masons had the wherewithal to step up with us and make a bold decision to acquire this property that became available to truly transform this facility itself into now this Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain. We just celebrated one year, John, and in the first year, That team guarded more than 43 federal grants, which is kinda unheard to of in, in that, um, particular speed of a timeframe. And we had 17,000 patient visits, holy town, that first year. So we can't fake Minnesota Masonic charities enough. Cause I dunno that that would've ever happened had we not had you as lead partners to make that come online when it did right before the pandemic. Well, as I always like to say, it gives, us as Masons and members of the Eastern Star, An opportunity to attach our brand to a pretty special brand. And that is the work that's being done at those three facilities and 17,000 patient visits in one year. It's gotta be beyond what was expected initially. And the other thing that I'll tell you too, so one of the coolest things about the Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain is we don't just serve patients in this particular community. We really are providing access to care throughout this region. And we launched this program really gained at virtual visits and essentially tele outreach is the program that we. Really created that gives our patients and our families access in Duluth, in International Falls, in, you know, southern Minnesota, the opportunity to have those clinical visits and even be almost educated to help navigate whatever is going through with their child. And I think the other piece of that that I'll mention too is this happened all during the pandemic. So when other clinics were shut down, we had the ability and the infrastructure to launch this inherently. And I think that is another means that we were able to integrate into the M I db that has now developed a new model for other institutions to follow because this has become rather unique in its own right and those visits contribute obviously to the overall, and I think we're just scratching the surface. John, I think unfortunately there are pretty significant waiting lists. And when these families, and we hear this from our families, when you're going through that incredibly critical and challenging time, whether it's a disease of despair, if it's mental health or if it's neuro development, if it's autism, whatever it might be, and you need help right now, it is so hard because we don't have enough staff to keep up with the volume of the needs. So I think as we think about kind of what this next phase of the m I DB as it's affectionately called, part of it is making sure that we educate the pipe and there's a pipeline for this next generation of brain health specialists and psychiatrists and psychologists and, um, community navigators that can help our families really navigate, uh, this particular type of a, a disease and a challenge. When we saw the relationship between the Masonic Cancer Center and the Masonic Children's Hospital, and you saw the, the, the overlap in those stories, we imagined that there would be the same type of cooperation between the Masonic Children's Hospital and the Masonic Institute for the developing brain. It just seemed so natural. how did those relationships work? How do they work with each. So that's a great question and there is so much continuity and, and crossover. So a couple things. The, and I'm gonna use a pun, so go with me. You're gonna use a what? A pun. Oh, good. We like puns. The brainchild, the brainchild of the Masonic Institute of the Developing Brain actually formed outta the Department of Pediatrics. The good news is the first thousand days initiative essentially started within the pediatrics and it really aimed at looking at the most optimal prime in a child's brain developed when the brain is most plastic. So that, if any, Essentially rewiring or intervention needed to happen. That timeframe in a child's life is the most optimal cause of the brain plasticity That was launched through Mason's support at the Masonic Children's Hospital. And then when it became clear that this had, you know, more traction and there were other of the Center for Neuro behavioral development that we could build into this, that's when it made more sense to actually kinda dream. And you and Masonic Char dreamed with us on what this could look. Actually taking over the facility that is now the idb. The other thing that I would mention, we were able to recruit Dr. Damien Fair, who is an actual certified Genius. Genius. Genius. Yep. We like to have geniuses. Yep. We loved Geniuses and MacArthur Fellow. Um, And Dr. Michael GI said, are co-directors of the db. Dr. Michael GI has been our leader in, in the nicu, in the field neonatology for more than 40 years. He also, as the executive vice chair department, pediatrics, So there is great continuity in leadership, in vision, in strategy, um, but then the commitment, I think this is where the piece so aligns the mission of the, of Masonic Charities. There is such a commitment to world class academic medicine and access to healthcare. And also it's the moral imperative that we have as the safe land institution to educate too, um, this next generation of leaders. And so there is so much crossover and collegiality. I think the other thing mentioned, we treat actually one of the largest inpatient mental health, um, behavioral health programs in the country for adolescent health. So that's the other aspect of the I D B is how do we really help to provide intervention for the kids more in the teenage years, which also proves to be a second time period where the intervention can really have an optimal outcome. A lot of that stems from the children's hospital and the work that we do in our behavioral units over there. So there's a lot of crossover if. I would probably categorize it as the Masonic Children's Hospital tends to treat and medically serve more of the inpatient population. And the M I DB is really designed to provide more of the outpatient experience for the family. You, you talk about the, uh, by the way, you are really good at this. Really good at this. My gosh, no wonder you're so good over there. Um, but all kidding aside, There are a lot of physical ailments that are addressed at the Masonic Children's Hospital, but anecdotally, I hear about all of these young people dealing with different types of social and emotional challenges. do you see that in the census at your, uh, facilit? We do. So a couple things to note. The Department of Pediatrics is one of the largest and oldest pediatrics departments in the country. We've been around for more than a hundred years. And what we are also one of the top ranked, um, department of Pediatrics in the country. So what we're seeing is some of the trickiest and most, um, complex D. To some of the more traditional broken bones and things you would expect to see in more of a a traditional emergency room setting. The challenge right now that we're seeing is so much in mental health, and these are really considered to be what's called diseases of despair, and so we tend to treat the majority of the children in this particular region. Through, um, Masonic Children's Hospital, whether it is coming through the emergency room, whether say for example they're a childhood cancer patient or a childhood heart transplant, they have their own mental health challenge, their health. But right now what we were able to do is launch something newer within the emergency room at the Masonic Children's Hospital called the Expanded Behavioral Evaluation Center. Essentially, this provides a more holistic setting for our families to intervene with staff. In a calming, um, more welcoming type environment that's not that sterile type setting that traditionally can be more of a scary, um, emergency room. Sure. That also helps to provide a little bit of mitigation for whatever that crisis moment is that the family is experiencing. The challenge for us is we are getting patients. Either dropped off at our door, they're getting sent over by other health systems, unfortunately, and we had to come up with a makeshift way to care for these families and unfor at least the children. And they were unfortunately having to be, um, cared for in, in an ambulance day because we had nowhere else to build a makeshift emergency room. Oh, wow. So through this new model that aims to. Mitigate the severity of the situation and to provide a better outcome for that child. If they do need to be admitted, they will have the to do that. Providing this type of essentially expanded behavioral center, it provides that opportunity for staff intervene in more calming way to. Provide kinda more of a sensitive opportunity to help that child navigate whatever that crisis moment is that he or Shere going through a And are you using the, the, the telemedicine model for those type of interventions as well, or, because I would imagine that that would be very, uh, applicable to what you're trying to get accomplished over. So right now I think we're largely focused on the, on the expertise and the education. Ok. Um, the other thing that I will say we're doing through telehealth right now is our center, our Auto Trust Center for Safe and Healthy Children. That is housed within the Masonic Children Hospital treats more children. That suffer from a child abuse and neglect than any other, uh, facility within our region. Oh boy. Because we have renowned specialists that are trained in that subspecialty of child abuse. Oftentimes we are treating that type of, uh, medical care through telehealth. Um, we treat it obviously onsite. We have, uh, actually kinda a space for our center for Safe and healthy Children right across the street from the hospital. But the other thing is that, is that is a very challenging diagnosis, as you can imagine, and oftentimes our specialists provide that expertise to general pediatricians throughout the state. And it also helped. Provide opportunities to, to almost educate them too on this is something you need to look for as a sign of abuse. Or you may hear this from parent, but unfortunately this is the other thing that's really happening with the child. And then as you can imagine, law enforcement might get more involved. But that's another aspect that we offer to this region. More in the area of child abuse and neglect. And when we were going through the pandemic and schools were shut down and, and everything else kind of went to virtual, we didn't have those mechanisms in place to alert or. To reach out to Child Protective Services. So a lot of this kinda went on track. Wow. So now what you're seeing is now that kids are back in school, there's more mechanisms for awareness of a child. If they do need to seek those services, we can be able to help them really, regardless of where they're living. as I mentioned, this is both the mis Minnesota Masonic Histories and mysteries and the Kindness Chronicles. And one of the things that I've always been just overwhelmed with is the people that work at both the Masonic Children's Hospital and the Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain, as well as the, the, the Masonic Cancer Center. Mm-hmm. those people that decide that they wanna make their lives work to help children have a special. They have some special sauce that's really quite remarkable. Um, I would imagine that, uh, one of the joys, you know, you talk about joy. One of the joys of having a job like you have is that you're just constantly surrounded by kind people. Mm-hmm. Um, one of the things we like to do on this podcast is we like to, uh, inject the world with a dose of oxytocin. you know, those stories that, that give us the, uh, the goosebumps that make us feel good about things. Yeah. And specifically, when you are in the fundraising business, you get to work with people who, make a meaningful difference, through their volunteerism, but also through their philanthropy. And you get to specifically work with some pretty, well known. Athletes and celebrities. Mm-hmm. tell us a little bit about how fun that must be and tell us a little bit about the, the, uh, the people that you've had the privilege of working with, cuz I know it's a privilege. So going back to your first question, I think one of the things that is so inspiring to me and what keeps that relentless, uh, pursuit towards, you know, philanthropically supporting fundraising's centered. Push boundaries on possibilities of advancing novel discoveries, new therapies like we talked about. Theyre trained to figure out what to do that can be better for human health. And the one thing I just wanted to, you talked about. So Minnesota, especially within pediatrics, were known for these medical firsts. And one that I think is so incredible to note is the fact that we perform Minnesota's first infant heart transplant. Well, we personally got to know the family that is, um, our 800th heart transplant. And this happened a number of years ago and it was an incredible journey. 800th heart transplant. University's 800. Oh my gosh. Oh my God. I know. And this little girl is. In so many ways, and she had to be hooked up to her temporary heart while she was awaiting her permanent heart from this donor. First of all, that is remarkable in and of itself that she could have this temporary heart providing the, the, the oxygen and the blood that she needed while she was waiting for this other transplant. Unbelievable. She is now. and to see her on a hockey team and skating with, you know, all of these other kids that never had to endure. What she did is I still get chills and tears in my eyes when I watch her. Cause she's such a gem. And for her to have survived so much of what she's been able to survive, that wouldn't have happened had we not had those remarkable physicians and scientists working so tirelessly to push the boundaries. So I share that because I think that's where I. The, and the joy in seeing her state because again, knowing all of just what maybe couldn't be accomplished if we didn't have those people asking those questions or pushing those boundaries. So I share that cause be heart transplant and to be thriving not only surviving, but thriving. Is something that I think is so remarkable. So when you talk about athletes and, and, um, celebrities, I have to say we are so fortunate, whether it's Kyle Rudolph, former Minnesota Vikings, or Zucker, former Minnesota families have made Masonic Children's Hospital home from home, and it would've been so easy for them, I think, to cut a check and say, you know, they supported X, Y, and Z at the hospital. But they gave tirelessly and still give tirelessly to build the space to make sure that there's programmatic support for whether it's the Zone or the Zucker family and broadcast studio. Oftentimes you'll see them on their days off actually visiting with patients and families in those spaces. And I think too, when your child is, you know, enduring, whether it's a cancer diagnosis or if it's tic fibrosis, whatever it. And they are living in this hospital for days, weeks, and sometimes months at a time. Those spaces are their rested. That's where they get to just be kids. And we're so fortunate because Kyle and Jordan, in particular, John Sullivan before them, they've invested into the livelihood of these children and to see them live it out all these years later, And we're so fortunate, I think, to have them in our community. And we, we know they're not on Minnesota teams right now, but, um, we, they've both shared too that they've made Minnesota home and it's been such a privilege and such a joy to get to know their family because they've become ours. Our very first, interview for the Kindness Chronicles was with Carly Zucker. And what a, uh, and she, and, and I always thought it was Zucker and she used a rather. Creative way of making me remember that. It's zucker Um, you'll have to go back to the first episode because, uh, good taste prevents me from sharing that, uh, little way of remembering zucker rhyme with something else. I can imagine. Maybe car could have joined us at math tonight. Yeah. She, she, I'm sure she would have. Yes. Um, I, it, it really is remarkable what you. People are able to get accomplished over there. The people that are listening to this, you know, when you think about those of you especially that are supporters of, uh, Masonic Charities or the Masonic Children's Hospital or any of the, the Masonic philanthropies that we're involved in, to think about that young lady with her, uh, uh, with the 800th heart transplant out playing hockey. Is she a Minnesota. She's a Minnesota kid. And how old would she be? So she is nine. Oh my gosh. So she's nine and she had her heart transplant, if I remember correctly. I think she was about six months old. Holy cow. The people that invent these heart machines, like, we're just gonna hook you up to an artificial. While we're searching or while we're looking for a, uh, a transplant, this little six month old baby, it's mind blowing to me. It I know. And that is so. Inherent in the mission, and that's the differentiator. And that's why we are so fortunate to partner with Masonic Charities because I think had we not had the philanthropic support, you fueled it. And to be able to garner, whether it's federal support from these other grants or other transformational gifts, you are oftentimes the catalyzer. And that's when the rubber meets the. and these new developments can happen, or these new, you know, spaces can be built. And if we did not have that, John, I, I don't know where we would be on some of this, because your support oftentimes provides that early data. That we can then get like a million dollar grant, a multi million dollar grant, even from the NIH orci in some instances. And that's the piece that I think is so important. I, I was talking to Dr. So Bemis didn't mention anything about impact on the Masonic Cancer Center was astounded by. The survival rate, generally speaking for cancer is not necessarily one particular type of cancer or the other. The survival rate right now of a cancer years unheard of years, and Sonic Charities has invested in the Masonic Cancer Center. You have changed that field in a way where we can now say you have a chance of surviving. So I just wanna make sure that that is so known too, cause. That is definitely a disease that is now not necessarily as maybe always as dire, but it's something that people are now, now actually conditioned to live with. Cause the survival rates have gotten to be so high. Well, a, an event that is coming up that I'm really excited about is, uh, on Tuesday, January 31st, um, there is a special check presentation that's going to be happening. Yeah, I, I was asked to. Coach for a group of fourth graders at, uh, Willow Lane Elementary School in White Bear Lake. Lee Anderson, who runs, uh, this program there, put together 10 teams of fourth graders and they each were given an opportunity to present a. Nonprofit, uh, that they were interested in. Uh, that's called Minnow Tank. It's sort of like a shark tank, but for little people. And, uh, the team that I had coincidentally, uh, was very interested in supporting the Masonic Cancer Center. Yeah. And what was super cute is when I first met these kids, I, asked them why the Masonic Cancer Center? And they did research about different cancer. Centers in the, the state of Minnesota, and one of the boys made a comment about the fact that his grandma had died from cancer. And one of them talked about the fact that they had a cousin that had cancer, but they were better now. And this stuff was really important to these fourth graders. We took third place. Which I'm still not very pleased with because the, uh, the guy that took, uh, second place, I believe may have paid off the judges, but that's a whole nother, so there's a, a congressional investigation that will be underway. Investigation. We're looking into it. Uh, Marty Rathman, he was the coach of that team, and Marty we're, uh, we're still counting the votes. I'm, I'm still not convinced that, uh, but anyways, all that aside, These kids apparently reached out to you to, to tell you about this, uh, this victory that they had and arranged for a, uh, a check presentation. So I'm, uh, they did, and when they called, their elation came through. I mean, they were so excited to be able to share this news, and it's not every day you get a call like that and they. In their own right, but the fact that they were so strong in their conviction, this needs to go to the Masonic Center, we help with this. Cancer research was so inspiring. Hear, say, words forward to come out for. We could not be more thrilled. I could not. I just. Super excited about it. Well, this has been among the easiest, uh, interviews that I've ever had to conduct because, uh, you really know your stuff over there. Before we leave, I do have to ask, um, You are a St. Thomas grad as I am. I am. Mm-hmm. uh, you are like maybe a decade, decade and a half after me. yes. But, uh, it, it must make you feel good as a Tommy to see that they're, uh, that they're having some success raising money over on the, uh, St. Paul side of the river. Um, yes, very. I am so happy for them. This St. Thomas community has put so much in into this division. Effort. But above that, I think it's the fact that there is such a desire to boldly pursue that Catholic education. This gift will transform their ability to play at that high level that we are also aspiring at those athletes to play. And I think further it's just doubles down on that mission of excellence in educat. And to see Lee and Penny Anderson, not once but twice, make a gift at a five MI million plus. Now this one is 5 million level is incredible and the fact that they actually, um, weren't alumni, I think is. Even inspiring in its own right that they believe so much in this institution, in this community. And I have to give a shout out to my good friend, um, the new president Rob. He is remarkable and will lead this community, in this institution into great, in this next phase of the St. Thomas legacy in history. And I could not be more excited. And I think just in the, uh, philanthropic community, when you see someone like Lean Penny Anderson stepping up in such a huge, huge way, um, it really, I believe that it inspires other philanthropy. I think that people that, uh, that look at them and see what a, a, a, a meaningful impact their treasures are going to have on, uh, generations of, of young people. Uh, my son Ben was at the event and yeah, I mentioned on. Previous podcast that he went up and thanked Lee for his, uh, support and on behalf of his family who were all Tommy's and, uh, had one last question. What kind of shampoo you using, which just is be, I didn't know if I wanted to strangle him or salute him, but it was, uh, he's got good hair. Ben saw it, he called it. He does have good hair. He really great, great hair. I just, it's, and who doesn't wanna be told they got good looking hair? Well, I, uh, again, thank you so much for your time. I assume that you have children that you need to cart around. I do. I have to get back to being a mom, which is like another joy most days, another joy. Little less days when they're going through teenage years. But we'll navigate. I know that your son is a baseball player and your daughter is a dancer. You are living my life just 10 years later, Um, I remember having to drive, uh, the, one of the finest days of my. The joyful day of my life is when my daughter got her driver's license. Oh, because having now she gets to drive you. She, well, we're at some point, I'm just gonna sit in the back seat and I'm gonna have her cart me around, like, uh, driving Miss Daisy driving. Miss Daisy. Yes. There you go. Well, Kristy, you go, uh, get back to being a mom and, uh, thank you again for all the tremendous work that you do, And off we go.