We have known these beautiful ladies, Mary Borkett and Marilyn Clements, for the past 5 years. My granddaughter has leukemia and has been a patient at Long Beach Memorial’s Miller’s Children’s Hospital, with stays of up to 21 days.

Costumes, tap shoes, hats, MUSIC, DANCE, CRAFTS! You have no idea how much JOY this brings to children in the hospital fighting cancer! The entire floor lights up with laughter and loud music! The parents, the nurses, the KIDS are dancing in their beds if they can’t actually get out of bed to join the fun!

Mary and Marilyn have a kind and gentle way of bringing a carefree happiness to each child on the floor! The kids can choose a costume and KEEP IT! They can put on all sorts of dress up stuff and just let themselves be free of the sadness and fear for a couple of hours.

Discovery Arts is fantastic idea that, in my opinion, every single hospital should have on their Child Life Roster! The mental welfare of your young cancer patients absolutely deserves to experience Mary and Marilyn’s loving personalities and gifts of joy. You’re doing your hospital a disservice if you don’t have Discovery Arts making these beautiful children happy, even if it’s only once a week!

We know this from experience. My granddaughter is currently a patient at UCLA for a bone marrow transplant and when we found out that our beloved Mary and Marilyn were coming by, none of us could contain our happiness! It made the day for my granddaughter!

You owe YOURSELF the experience! It’s pure heaven to let loose and sing and dance shamelessly surrounded with children dragging their “poles” and smiling from ear to ear!

With love and affection for Mary and Marilyn,
Gloria COOKIE Warren
COOKIE’s Grandma
May 26, 2006

Cookie, we love you!! We have so many wonderful memories with Cookie and Grandma Cookie. It warms our hearts that she has survived and thrived, after all that she went through. 
 
What a blessing it is for us to be able to be there for such a beauty young girl ... We are so proud of her and love her so much!

Marilyn Clements
Executive Director, Discovery Arts

Here is a beautiful story that Alyssa's mom wrote for us. What a special girl she is. Alyssa, is now 8 years old.

Alyssa was just three when she was diagnosed with leukemia. A year into her treatment she developed a virus in her brain. She became very sick and was in a drug induced coma for 5 days. When she finally woke up nobody knew what to expect. Alyssa could not speak, she could not walk and days later it was confirmed that she had permanently lost her sight. Alyssa had to relearn how to talk and walk but her right side remained weak and she has very limited use of her right hand. About three month's after Alyssa was released from the hospital she started to have seizures. On a good day she would have three or four seizure, on a bad day she could have up to thirty in an hour. About a year and a half after Alyssa lost her sight she finished her chemo treatment and was declared in remission. Normally this would be a big celebration but due to her uncontrollable seizures we wondered how long her little body could take it. This is when we sought out a surgical cure to Alyssa's seizures. Doctors at UCLA recommended removing Alyssa's left hemisphere of her brain. While we never had heard of such a thing we knew we had to take a chance to find a cure for her. In November of 2010 Alyssa underwent massive brain surgery, her doctors ended up removing two thirds of her left hemisphere in hopes of keeping her communication skills intact.

Alyssa had another long recovery ahead of her. She had to learn to talk and walk again but this red head was determined to survive. Her last seizure was in May of 2011. The surgery has worked. We are now reducing her seizure meds and everyday I see pieces of the little girl that was taken away from me return. Alyssa can walk and talk, she can do simple math and is learning Braille. Alyssa also knows has a service dog named Flint, he helps her with mobility and various other things that he was trained for. Alyssa has an amazingly funny personality and even though her sight is gone forever she see's more clearly than anyone I know.

During Alyssa's many stays at the hospital her only entertainment was the playroom. She especially looked forward to Thursday's as that was Discovery Arts day. She couldn't wait to go down to pick out a costume or to do a special craft. The days when she was too sick leave her room she would always ask "do I still get my costume?" but the women would already know that she was sick and they would have picked one out for her. We have dozen's of pictures of Alyssa dressed up in different costumes and her smile was never bigger than on the days she was a princess or a fairy. Hospital life is hard on everyone, especially the patient, but Discovery Arts offer a little escape from reality!

~ Alyssa's Mom

On behalf of the entire Cast and Crew of Discovery Arts, we would sincerely like to thank  The Faris Family for their generous partnership by becoming a Set Director Sponsor.

Their incredible generosity as a Set Director supports our program supplies and will ensure that programs, in the hospitals we serve, have enough supplies needed to bring 'Arts Adventures' for a day of creativity and fun to an otherwise overwhelming hospital environment.

These programs would not be successfully without the generous support from our partners like The Faris Family. We deeply appreciate their kindness and willingness to become our partner.


With Heartfelt Thanks!
Marilyn Clements
Executive Director, Discovery Arts

During the month of January when you shop at Mama Jean's Markets at their 3 locations in Springfield, MO they will be collecting Spare Change for Discovery Arts! 

We'd like to personally THANK Susie Farbin and Diana Hicksand, and the entire staff of MaMa Jean's Markets for including Discovery Arts in their Change for Change Program this month. Every month MaMa Jean’s highlights a local charitable organization for their Spare Change for Change program. Canisters are available at each register for one month, and MaMa Jean’s matches donations given by our customers up to $250.

MaMa Jean's Markets are special ... healthy food and products, community outreach, wonderful events, a deli, and coming soon ... online shopping. We are thrilled to have wonderful friends like MaMa Jean's who focus on healthy living.
We'll keep you posted on the opening of their online shopping soon for our friends around the world!

Find out for yourself the many specials here > MaMa Jean's Markets

Honor every healthy child you know to help a sick child who is in the hospital.

November is a great time to count your blessings for all the things you are thankful for. What better way to put your gratitude in to action. For all of the healthy children in your life honor them by donating a "Grateful Dollar" for children who are struggling with a parents worse nightmare ... a child who is very very ill.

Join us in our pledge to give a GRATEFUL DOLLAR FOR EVERY HEALTHY CHILD IN YOUR LIFE, your kids, grand children, nieces and nephews, your children's friends.

Click the donate button below to send in your Grateful Dollar!

Your donation is Tax Deductible!

We are Discovery Arts, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that brings music, art, dance and drama to children with cancer and life threatening illnesses while they are in the hospital receiving treatment. We currently have ongoing programs at Mattel Children’s Hospital at UCLA, Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC), Miller Children’s Hospital, Jonathan Jaques Children’s Cancer Center at Millers, CHOC at Mission, Fountain Valley Regional Medical Center, CA and Mercy Children's Hospital, Springfield, MO.

We are seeking donations of boys and girls costumes and dress up accessories. At every “Arts Adventure” children select a costume to keep, so we are in constant need of replenishment. Princesses, Super-hero's, and Character costumes are always popular, yet anything we can use to create a “Dress-Up” moment is appreciated! Our children range from infants to eighteen years of age, all sizes and styles are needed.

For our children “Dressing-Up” gives them the opportunity to transcend the horrible circumstance of critical illness and for the moment just be a child. For these children, normalcy is their greatest wish. During our time together they have the freedom to be a ballerina, a muscle man, or super star! They are no longer sick, and no longer feel like they are in the hospital.

To donate new costumes; buy one and send it to us, send us a gift card or make a donation and we will make sure they have them!! 

Thank you for helping our sick kids be kids.

With Heartfelt Thanks,
Marilyn Clements
Executive Director

It's October already!!
Pumpkins, Candy, Costumes... But wait!!
We can't take pumpkins or candy into the hospitals, but we can bring NEW COSTUMES!!

Join us in our pledge to give a BRAND NEW COSTUME to each and every child, each and every time they are in the hospital and THEY GET TO KEEP THEM!!!

Transforming themselves and transcending their circumstances is very important during treatment and it makes a big difference for these special children who are in the hospital missing all the activities that most other children get to take part in.

To donate a new costume, buy one and send it to us, or you can send us a gift card or make a donation below. We make sure children who are in the hospitals we serve, have a brand new costume each and every day we have an Arts' Adventures.