The Sentinel-Record - HER - Hot Springs
Splash of Red
T
he Splash of Red event will benefit Arkansas Children’s Hospital and honor two local children and their families.
The Garland County Circle of Friends’ annual fundraiser is presented by a committed group of women who help support the hospital’s work with families, to ensure that each child gets the best possible care.
“We have several little fundraisers, but Splash of Red is our annual huge fundraiser,” said Courtney Post, public relations chairwoman. “All the money we raise we send directly to Children’s.”
Splash of Red begins at 7 p.m. on March 15 at Horner Hall in the Hot Springs Convention Center. The theme is “Totally ’80s Re-Mix.” “This year it is cocktail or costume, or both. You can come in your cocktail dress, or come dressed in your ’80s costume or you can combine them and come in your ’80s cocktail dress,” Post said.
“We will have food and beverages, a live band and a silent auction with great items that are donated from around the community.”
A live auction is also planned and traditionally is a highlight of the evening. “People really get into it,” she said.
Guests can also meet the honorees, MaryKate Folds, 10, and Griffin Wuensch, 13, both of Hot Springs, Traci Folds and Rich Wuensch, parents of Griffin Wuensch, Jayme Stallman and J.R. Folds, parents of MaryKate Folds, and Jason Stallman.
Griffin Wuensch has said he wants to speak
and share his story at Splash of Red and he has been named co-emcee with entertainer Ken Goodman.
When he was just 3 years old, Wuensch was treated for a week at Children’s Hospital.
“He was very lethargic and was not acting like a typical 3-year-old,” his dad Rich Wuensch said.
He was diagnosed with insulin-dependent diabetes, his mother Traci Folds said.
After his treatment began he was feeling back to normal and “once his blood sugar dropped, he loved it because Arkansas Children’s has games and a playroom and he thought it was great. Whereas, mom and dad were a little nervous. At first, they started us off with injections. When he was 5, he started wearing the pump,” she said.
Following an introduction to the insulin pump, and “through all kinds of training and education about the pump and how to control diabetes using it, we got the hang of it,” his dad said. “You are not stuck to a meal plan and certain times of day that you can eat. It gives you much more freedom for a 5year- old.”
With regular visits to see his doctor, “Children’s Hospital is like a second family to us,” his mom said.
MaryKate Folds has also been treated numerous times at Children’s Hospital, her father J. R. Folds said.
“Because of Arkansas Children’s Hospital, we have her,” he said.
“So if you ask, ‘What does Children’s Hospital mean
Because of Arkansas Children’s Hospital, we have her. - J.R. Folds
to me and our family?’ – her life. I could not imagine living in a state without a hospital like Children’s.”
He is often asked what his daughter’s diagnosis is.
“The technical diagnosis is Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum, which means the middle part of her brain did not develop. There are many spectrums. There are people at Harvard without a corpus callosum. And there are people who can’t do near what she does. We did not know what to do. But when we got to Children’s, they have been a blessing in our lives,” Folds said.
The Splash of Red patrons will make a difference by showing their concern for area children and hundreds of partygoers are expected to turn out.
“The challenges of the event for 600 people are a lot easier to overcome for the cause,” says Michelle Mouton Harrison, event chairwoman.
“Especially when you have situations like MaryKate’s and Griffin’s. It’s a very easy challenge to accept. I have a great group that I could not do this without, as with anything.”
The Garland County Circle of Friends wel- comes other women to take part, Post said.
“We charge a $25 annual fee. We have a member drive in September to try to get new people on for the year, but if you want to walk on in February and join, you are more than welcome to do that. It’s for anyone who has a heart for children. It’s a fun group and everyone really wants to get together and help these kids in the best way possible.”
The Circle of Friends meets once a month for an evening social hour, usually at a restaurant.
Many of the women who take part either have had a child treated or know of someone whose child has been treated at Children’s Hospital.
Post’s own son, a healthy 3-year old, experienced a swallowing problem when he was 7 months old.
That experience and seeing other children at the hospital put things in perspective for her, she said.
“I realized the need.”