I pull into the parking lot and try to find an open space. As I look around at the cars, trucks and SUV’s already parked, I think of all the families those vehicles represent. I think about whether or not those cars have been parked in that garage for hours, days, weeks or maybe months.

I wonder if the people who drove here in those vehicles woke up knowing they were coming here. Was it a scheduled visit? Maybe they had a surgical procedure already booked? Maybe they’re here for testing, or a tonsillectomy or perhaps chemotherapy? Or did they find themselves driving here because of an accident, a fall or some other unexpected reason? Then, my mind wanders to the vacant parking spaces and I think about what they represent. Another child, another family, another story will arrive soon and their vehicle will fill that open parking spot. And they have no idea.

Those are the thoughts I have every time I arrive at Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin to settle in for the 3-day, 60-hour radio-thon we call ‘The Miracle Marathon’ on 96.5 WKLH. We started the Marathon in 1998 and every year we have countless meetings and brainstorming sessions on ways to make the Miracle Marathon better and more efficient. But no amount of planning can predict who we will be interviewing and which family will find their car parked in the Children’s Hospital garage.

It could be new parents who are dealing with a baby born with a genetic disorder. Maybe a Mom who inexplicably finds her toddler unresponsive in the family home? Or perhaps parents who drive here while Flight for Life transports their son or daughter?

There are no classes to teach parents how to respond to situations they had no idea they’d be facing. How can you explain what it’s like to see your child, your sweet, innocent child, face a life or death situation? It happened to us. After 2 very healthy baby boys, we had our daughter. Almost immediately they told us she was very sick and needed help. As I drove from Waukesha to Wauwatosa following the ambulance, leaving my wife at the hospital where she had just given birth, my thoughts raced. I was met by the most skilled, caring, professional health care workers in the world. Yep, it was my car that was in the empty parking space. And it was there for 8 full days. Our daughter is a healthy young woman now, but I don’t have to tell you how scared we were during those first 8 days of her life.

At 5 a.m. on Wednesday, May 26^th, we’ll start another 3-day, 60-hour Miracle Marathon on ‘KLH. We always say that Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin is a great insurance policy should your Children, Grandchildren, nieces or nephews ever need it. Maybe what we should be saying is, “Please give, because you never know when you’ll be looking for that open parking space.”

Get  details on how to set-up a firstgiving.com/childrens donation page now!