11-01-02news3

Colby's story inspires new program
by Lenny Roberts

It began with Jocelyn Somers' interest in Colby Chapman, the Ojai boy stricken with bone-marrow leukemia. Somers, an Ojai Property Shoppe real estate agent, has been visiting Chapman at Children's Hospital in Los Angeles, where he has been receiving treatment for his illness.
While there, Somers learned that there is a major need for games of interest to the scores of kids who, hopefully, are making the institution, their temporary home.
By this edition of the OVN, Chapman, a 9-year-old San Antonio School student, should be back in Los Angeles for more chemotherapy after a few days at home.
"His condition is really good," said Somers, "and he should be an outpatient by December." The prognosis is a miracle, Somers believes, because he was reportedly near death when admitted last summer.
"Colby's doctors took a look at him and he was airlifted to UCLA and not expected to live through the night. I believe that because of the spirit of Ojai, this kid is special, and that and he has touched a lot of hearts."
In honor of the Colby's Kids Program, Somers has started Holiday of Hope, a program to collect new and used Gameboys and board games for hospitalized children, and equally as important, a drive to secure and maintain a bloodmobile for Ventura County.
"There is no bloodmobile from San Luis Obispo to Los Angeles, and it's very inconvenient for people to donate," Somers explained. "Think about it; Children's Hospital is very short on blood - not just for kids with cancer - but for those with cystic fibrosis and kids in need of heart transplants. They use so much blood, and blood is only good for 35 days. When a kid goes in for chemo, they don't like to use blood that's more than 15 days old. Getting a bloodmobile is like getting an act of god, but there's no two ways about it, we'll do it."
Somers said that even with all the corporations employing thousands of people in Los Angeles, nobody wants to take 20 minutes and drive to Children's Hospital. Backing up that allegation, Somers said that last Thursday, seven
people donated blood. The day before, 27 pints of blood were donated - from The Thacher School, mostly from football players.
"The Thacher kids read about the upcoming fund raiser and wanted to do something. They know we need blood, and they did this all on their own," Somers said.
A visit last week from Britney Spears was the obvious highlight of Chapman's stay at Children's Hospital, where he told Chapman, "She kissed me on the head and now can't wash it. You know what's better? Those kids from Thatcher coming up to my room."
Board and video games are needed for the children because Somers said they have a down period following chemotherapy, and the steroids induced can have a tendency to make them mean and angry.
"We're also in need of more people to cook meals for the family and possibly bake for them." Somers explained. "They are all doing really well thanks to all the wonderful community support and the open-hearted people that have taken them in and given them a sense of self-worth."
Had he attended San Antonio School this semester, Chapman would have been in the same class as Somers' son, Jackson. Somers wants Chapman to be able to participate in his fourth-grade class and not held back a year because of his illness.
"I contacted Michael Dell from Dell Computers. I asked them to donate computers and cameras to hook these kids up so that they can actually participate in their school's classes. God Bless home-school (at Children;'s Hospital), but its only an hour a day," Somers said.
On Nov. 16, Michael Kaufer is promoting a fund-raising event at the Ojai Valley Woman's Center, including entertainment by Alan Thornhill, Milton Kelley and others, along with a silent and live auction.
"And Stacy Jones at the Ojai Coffee Roasting Company matches every dollar placed in a plastic bowl for Colby. If not for all these people, none of this would have happened," Somers said.
For critically ill children with no insurance, Somers said
"Dr. John Boles (former Ojai resident and an original St. Jude's Hospital co-founder) is a gold mine. "He has made a promise that any child that is ill and needs to be hospitalized, St. Judes Hospital will take care of that family - airfare, the hospital and everything."

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