On October 25, 1995, Henry Strongin Goldberg was born. Two weeks
later, he was diagnosed with Fanconi anemia, a disease that threatened
to take his life, and challenged us to live well despite it.
Henry embraced each opportunity for living completely and reminded
the rest of us to do so. His sparkly eyes, mischievous grin and
infectious smile was a call to action to smile back, laugh along
and dance with him. His ear-to-ear smile and joyous laughter were
far more noticeable than his many surgical scars and low-platelet
related bruises. He suffered plenty of setbacks and spent more nights
in the hospital fighting against whatever Fanconi anemia would throw
his way, but just when it looked like the disease was too tough
of an opponent, Henry would rise up and get back to the life he
chose to lead. He had ice cream for dinner and transitioned from
the hospital to running a lemonade stand in a matter of minutes.
On December 11, 2002, the unimaginable happened. Henry died. While
we struggle to cope with Henry’s premature death, he is alive
and well in our hearts and minds, and every day we strive to be
true to the lessons he taught us about the importance of family,
friends, love, courage and laughter.
Henry was the master of living well and laughing hard. To honor
his life and share his magical way of making each day matter, we
have founded the Hope for Henry Foundation. Recognizing the restorative effect of laughter and learning, smiles and hope to quality of life and determination to get better for Henry and thousands of children like him, Hope for Henry Foundation strives to fill their recovery time with fun and entertainment in the form of gifts of their own new DVD players and movies, iPods and iTunes, Gameboy players and games, digital cameras and portable XM Satellite Radios. In addition, we provide hospitals with programs that bring musical instruments and lessons, and access to computers and digital still and video equipment that provide outlets for distraction, personal growth and recovery.
