Rajah News - April 2021

100 HOSPITAL TRIPS TO
CONNECT CHILDREN TO
HEALTHCARE
By Sam Ellis
It’s a sunny Monday morning around 6:30. Cindy pulls a curtain aside as a van pulls up in
front of her house. A magnetic sign on the van door reads Rajah Shrine Hospital Transportation.
Before long, a Noble comes and rings the doorbell and offers assistance in moving Cindy to
the van and loading her wheelchair. For Cindy and her
mother, June, this will be their first trip to the Philadelphia
Shriners Children’s Hospital using Rajah’s volunteer
service. For the two Nobles in the van, it will be one of
many. In fact, for the driver, Eric Kissinger, it will be his
one hundred and sixth trip of taking patients that lack
their own means of transportation to the hospital.
At first glance you would think that a Noble racking
up over 100 patient transportation trips would be unique.
But actually, several active drivers in Hospital Services
have attained that record and many are close to that goal.
And some have achieved over 200. For active drivers,
Bob Bainbridge has 360 trips to his credit, Kenneth Flynn
has 263, Donald Schneck has 260 and Russel Hottenstein
has 232.
Terry Hulsizer with Rajah's patient van donated
by Mike Mickey
It is an essential service for Shriners Hospitals for
Children having Shrine volunteers transporting patients
to and from their appointments. Rajah’s Hospital Services is the club that coordinates patient transportation for Berks, Bucks,
Lancaster, Lehigh, Montgomery, Northampton and Carbon counties.
Each trip requires 2 nobles - a driver and co-driver. Nobles’ ladies sometimes co-drive. Kay Ellis, Ruth Ann Seyler, Delores
Lund, Christina Little and Ann Kolh are active co-drivers. Ann Kohl has accompanied husband Bud on 128 trips. Bud and Ann are
also 2021 Aides.
At 8:00 a.m. the van pulls up to the front door of the Philadelphia Shriners Hospital, a half hour before their appointment. For
Cindy and June it was an easy comfortable hour and a half trip. The two nobles will park the van in the hospital parking garage,
which is always a challenge, and wait in the drivers lounge until the patient is ready to go back home. In the lounge, they’ll meet
nobles from other temples who are fulfilling that same mission of bringing patients and a family member safely to and from their
appointments.
Here is a list provided by Shriners Hospitals on current drivers with over 100 trips to their credit.
Bob Bainbridge 360
Donald Schneck 260
Robert Crouse 157
Paul Shaw 108
Sam Ellis 117
Barry Weisser 116
Current President of Hospital Services
Kenneth Flynn 263
Russel Hottenstein 232
Erick Kissinger 108
Harold Kohl 137
Peter Laspopoulos 165
Dennis Little 128
Einar Lund 173
Gerald Mengel 148
James Moyer 106
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