In support of the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation initiative, Raymond James will match up to $20,000 in donations. You may donate here.
***
Jack Nicklaus’ accomplishments as a golfer need no introduction even to the most casual of sports fans. His achievements as a philanthropist, equally impressive, are generally less well known, as are those of his wife of 60 years, Barbara. The couple’s longstanding focus on children’s health began in near-tragedy. In 1966, unbeknownst to the Nicklauses, their 11-month-old daughter, Nan, swallowed a crayon, causing ongoing struggles to breathe, recurring choking episodes and, eventually, pneumonia. The doctors at Columbus (Ohio) Children’s Hospital (now Nationwide Children’s Hospital) figured out the mystery and saved Nan’s life — and focused Jack and Barbara’s charitable impulses on young people’s well-being.
In 2004, the couple founded their legacy project, the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation (NCHCF). Its numbers are as staggering as Jack’s 18 major championship wins. The Foundation has raised $125 million and granted more than $80 million toward leading-edge pediatric healthcare in less than two decades. One outgrowth of its generosity: In 2015, the Miami Children’s Hospital in their adopted home state of Florida was renamed the Nicklaus Children’s Hospital, a facility that has helped children from every state in the U.S. and 119 countries worldwide.
Fast-forward to today, and the grim, world-changing Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic. For starters, masks became a necessity for everyone at hospitals, where universal mask policies have become standard practice. Nicklaus Children’s Hospital found itself spending upward of $20,000 per week in personal protective equipment (PPE) for its frontline workers, patients and patients’ families — a number that is likely to increase in the months ahead.
“The need for supplies has gone up tremendously,” said Patty McDonald, CEO of Nicklaus Children’s Health Foundation. “It’s a big additional expense for hospitals. Additionally, children’s hospitals around the country have been losing about $1 million per day — this virus has affected children’s hospitals in a very significant way.”
A surgeon at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital, Dr. Chad Perlyn, had an inspired idea to advocate for Covid-19 safety — one’s own and others’ — as well as to promote support for the hospital and foundation. The Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation’s logo is Jack’s iconic Golden Bear logo set within a red heart. What about having the bear where a mask?
The image became a slogan: “Wear the Bear. Show You Care.”
The slogan became an initiative.
Working with headwear maker Ahead USA, the foundation came up with the idea of creating a limited-edition hat with the new masked bear logo and matching slogan. Normally, of course, the profit margins on hats wouldn’t be enough to raise significant funds, at least in a short period of time. Circumstances demanded something bolder: an appeal to generosity.
