Fighting Cancer with Medicine and Foam Sabers

Masters School senior Adam Mandel has been actively giving time and money to the Westchester Medical Center's children's hospital since he was only 6 years old—donating, his mother said, everything he earned from cookie sales and lemonade stands directly to the hospital.

"I have a close friend who was born with a heart defect," Mandel said. "And just after he was born, he was successfully given a pacemaker right here at the Westchester Medical Center. Since then, I have made it a top priority to do anything I can for this hospital."

On Wednesday, Mandel and two nationally-ranked fencers, Tim Morehouse and Jeff Spear, came to the Maria Fareri Children's Hospital to perform a fencing demonstration for the critically ill children undergoing treatment there.

"I wanted to combine my two passions, fencing and this hospital," Mandel said. And in addition to providing an engaging diversion for the kids, Mandel also handed the hospital a $2,500 check, money he raised by organizing a fencing tournament aptly called The Maria Fareri Children's Hospital Saber Open.

Though the kids were captivated by the fencers'acrobatic moves and Morehouse's shiny, Olympic silver medal from Beijing, they were extra-attentive to Spear's account of how an unknown illness had almost taken him out of the sport forever.

"When I was 14, I was told I'd never fence again," Spear said, removing the heavy bee keeper-like mask to speak candidly to his audience. "I was really sick and spent the next two years fighting. But I was finally diagnosed and got better, and now I'm on the national fencing team." 

Mandel, a varsity fencer at the Masters School who also practices at the elite Manhattan Fencing Center in New York, immediately thought of Spear and Morehouse to perform for the children in Valhalla.

"They're both so charismatic and great with kids," Mandel said. "I knew they would do a fantastic job."

Besides demonstrating moves, the athletes distributed soft, foam sabers to each kid and taught them some moves of their own.  Though most of the children were hooked up to chemotherapy drips and wearing masks to prevent germs from entering their weakened systems, they seemed to have boundless energy to duel against each other and their visitors.

"Right now his blood counts are low, but he still has all the energy in the world," Kimberly Parker-Miller said of her 6-year-old son Marques.  Two years ago, Marques was diagnosed with advanced neuroblastoma, a cancer that forms in nerve tissue and is usually discovered in children between the ages of 2 and 4.

"By the time Marques was diagnosed, it had spread all through his body," his mother said. "At the time, he was given only a 30 percent chance of survival."

But Kimberly said thanks to the stellar medical care and welcoming atmosphere at Maria Fareri, Marques has been able to pull through. He's scheduled for a second stem cell transplant in October.

"Marques loves it here," Parker-Miller said. "For him, it's like coming to an amusement park. Activities like today's fencing demo definitely make things easier—it means the kids don't have the opportunity to mope around."

In addition to honing his fencing skills during the summer, Mandel also volunteers time at the children's hospital,  "making sure patients are comfortable, playing with them and talking to them," he said.

Eric and Karen Mandel, Adam's parents, said their son has always made community service a top priority, but that The Masters School has definitely heightened his dedication.

"The Masters School offers so many different opportunities," Karen said. "They really instill in students a strong belief in volunteerism and giving."

And what will Mandel's generous donation do for the hospital?

"The money's going directly to the department that purchases toys and games for the kids," Mandel said.