By Eric Berman
11/19/2008
Six current and former Riley Children's Hospital patients will act as statewide ambassadors for the hospital.
The new Riley Champions program will recognize patients for showing courage in facing down their illness, and send them around the state to tell their stories.
14-year-old Alexis Allen of Noblesville was born with spina bifida, and still uses a wheelchair. She participates in basketball, tennis, and track, and this summer went water-skiing.
"If somebody had a bad attitude all the time and was always negative just because of something that was going on in their life, I wouldn't want to be around that person," Allen says. "And I don't want people to think that because I'm in a wheelchair, I have a bad attitude all the time. So I try to keep my attitude positive."
Other "champions" are from Fort Wayne, South Bend, Evansville and Yorktown. They participated in the opening coin flip before the Colts-Texans game on Sunday.
Colts owner Jim Irsay, Indianapolis Motor Speedway president Tony George and Pacers Sports and Entertainment president Jim Morris presented all six with certificates at the annual Riley Children's Foundation luncheon in Indianapolis. George and Morris are members of the foundation's board of governors.
|