Longtime supporter of Children"s now on board - Sold lemonade as child to raise money for hospital

By Mary L. Grady

Island resident Mary Ann Flynn joined the Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center Board of Trustees this past fall.

``I feel very fortunate to have this opportunity to work with Children's Hospital,'' she said. ``I have been impressed with everyone I have worked with there.''

Flynn had been active with the Hope Heart Institute as a volunteer and fundraiser for many years and also served on the Providence Hospital Foundation Board. She also helps manage a foundation named for her late father, Dr. Leo Rosellini, a surgeon. Her mother, Kate Rosellini, was one of the first graduates of the University of Washington School of Nursing.

Flynn finds the atmosphere of the hospital both professional and welcoming.

``I have not walked in there once and seen unhappy faces,'' she said. ``The staff there is so dedicated and truly enjoy their work.''

Last Christmas, board members held a party for the staff at the hospital, she said. For those who could not attend because they were taking care of patients, board members wheeled around carts with goodies to the various patient care centers in the hospital.

Along with her mother Kate, Flynn has been involved with several forms of Children's Hospital guilds that raise money for the hospital over the years. As a little girl, she remembers selling lemonade or putting on plays with friends and sending the money, often just a few dollars, to the hospital.

As a member of the board, Flynn and other new members have gone through extensive training in board governance and interpreting financial statements. They have gone on grand rounds with physicians to visit patients and understand care.

Flynn notes that the hospital is focused on ethics and best practices in treating patients and their families.

The institution will celebrate its 100th birthday soon. And the board has an ambitious agenda for the years to come.

``With our adoption last year of a new vision to be the best children's hospital, our board has committed to be even more forward thinking as Children's continues to grow and flourish into the 21st century,'' said Kathy Randall, chair, Children's Hospital Board of Trustees.

One of the first items of board business last fall was to change the tradition of having an all-woman board to now include men, Flynn said.

Along with Flynn, new members Julia Calhoun and Laurie Oki joined the board in September. Children's CEO Truman Katz and Medical Director Richard Molteni, who joined the board as non-voting, ex-officio members, followed them in December. Dr. Rob Roskin, a pediatrician in private practice and immediate past president of the Children's Hospital Medical Staff, was also elected to the board.

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