From One Angel Comes Many

A Legacy of Love and Caring for Mary Beth Ricken

Excerpted from the fall 2001 issue of Children’s, a publication of the St. Louis Children’s Hospital Foundation. Reprinted with permission.

Few teenagers think of life as being short. More often, they see the years of their lives stretched before them and revel in a feeling of immortality.

Early on in her life, Mary Beth Ricken chose as her motto, “Life’s short – laugh hard!” and she proceeded to do just that. A 4.0 student, she loved reading and schoolwork, but was just as comfortable competing in soccer, softball or basketball and swooshing down ski slopes. Her bright smile was constant.

But there was another aspect of Mary Beth which perhaps made her understand that life can indeed be short, even for teenagers. Her parents, Sheila and Gerry Ricken, describe it as spirituality; Sheila’s friend, Bet Stapleton, calls it being “an old soul.” Whatever the quality, Mary Beth’s concern for those less fortunate than herself, especially children, went beyond that of other teens whose main interest might be planning their weekends or shopping. Her goal was to be a pediatric oncologist, and she would have been a good one.

Mary Beth was barely 15 when she died on January 23, 2001, of brain cancer that had spread to her spine. During the 14 months of her illness, her concern continued to focus not on herself but on her family and friends. She never complained, and she kept smiling.

What can we do to help?

It was a question often asked by a lot of people during Mary Beth’s illness, including her classmates at St. Joseph’s Academy.

“Mary Beth’s friends visited her in the hospital, and they saw firsthand – many of them for the first time – what it’s like not to have the privilege of getting up, feeling well and going to school,” says Stapleton. “Another of their classmates, Rachel Baumgartner, had been diagnosed with cancer a year before Mary Beth, so the St. Joe’s girls were eager to help in any way they could.”

Bet’s husband, Jack, hit upon the idea of organizing a group of students to volunteer at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Sheila and Gerry, along with Mary Beth’s siblings, Barbie, 14; Heidi, 12; and Will, 4, gave their enthusiastic approval.

“We thought that even though the girls couldn’t help Mary Beth directly, they could help other kids affected by illness or disease who had to spend time in the hospital,” says Sheila Ricken. “Mary Beth was excited about her friends and classmates getting a chance to help other children.”

The Ricken family’s endorsement of the idea was all Bet Stapleton needed to get the project started. After writing a proposal to St. Joseph’s Academy and receiving its support, Stapleton and another St. Joe mother, Madonna Fugel, started having meetings with students. The response was gratifying, with more than 80 girls filling out the hospital’s volunteer application.

Rachel Baumgartner – who recently underwent a bone marrow transplant and is doing well – named the project “Angels Helping Angels” in honor of St. Joe’s angel mascot, the children at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Mary Beth.

The first of its kind

“When Bet approached us with this idea, we thought it was a wonderful, generous offer unlike any other we had ever received,” says Kathy Gibala, guest services manager at St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

After completing their volunteer orientation last spring, the St. Joe’s students began working in such varied areas as oncology, the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), Child Life Services, the gift shop and volunteer office. Their interest in learning about the children they work with resulted in several educational sessions for them on subjects such as HIV/AIDS and childhood cancers.

“These students are friendly, compassionate, bright – everything you would ever look for in a volunteer,” says Gibala.

One such volunteer is Tina Modde, who is a senior at St. Joe’s. Modde’s interest in joining “Angels Helping Angels” was immediate.

“I had been wanting to volunteer in a hospital because I plan on a career in medicine, perhaps as a family practitioner. When I heard about this program, I thought it was a perfect way to honor Mary Beth and gain some experience in a health care setting,” says Modde. “Working in the PICU, I began seeing the patients as just regular kids, rather than kids with cancer or some other illness. I really learned how to interact with them.”

Expanding the program

During Kathy and Bet’s discussions about “Angels Helping Angels,” they talked of ways in which St. Joe’s students could expand their volunteer efforts beyond working a set number of hours each week or month. Future possibilities include organizing carnivals, presenting a school play or choral event, or providing “angel power” for special events.

“We really are still in the first stages of developing the program. However, we want to support the hospital in other ways, such as holding clothing or toy drives several times a year,” says Stapleton. “We’d also like to develop a list of students who can be on call to help out at the hospital when volunteers are in short supply, like in the fall when college students return to school.”

As the new school year starts, Bet plans on holding periodic meetings in which program members can share stories, compliments and experiences. “Although we’re told not to get attached to the patients, sometimes that’s a hard rule to follow. We want to make sure the girls have someone to talk with about their feelings,” explains Bet.

Bet sees “Angels Helping Angels” as a program that will carry on through generations to come. As new students enter St. Joseph’s Academy, they will learn about Mary Beth and the opportunity they have to honor her memory by helping the patients at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Many, like Tina, will volunteer because of an existing interest in health care as a career. Others may discover a vocation they hadn’t previously considered. And a young girl who knew life was short but laughed hard anyway will fulfill her dream of a medical career by inspiring others.