Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio presents 2022 Spirit of Health Award to Rebecca Taylor
- The Spirit of Health Award is given annually to an organization or individual who has had a significant impact on community health
- In addition to the Spirit of Health Award, BHFSA gave Rebecca’s organization Rebecca’s Wish a $1,000 gift
December 15, 2023 (SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS) — Baptist Health Foundation of San Antonio (BHFSA) presented the 2022 Spirit of Health Award to Rebecca Taylor, founder of Rebecca’s Wish.
The award was presented to Rebecca at BHFSA’s Awards Ceremony, held at First Baptist Church of San Antonio.
At age seven, Rebecca was diagnosed with chronic pancreatitis, a condition considered rare in children.
Over the following years, she had 100 surgeries and spent almost 2,000 days in the hospital. Pancreatitis causes unrelenting abdominal pain and compromises organs. Rebecca has lost seven and a half digestive organs, many of them before her teen years.
At age twelve, Rebecca was approached by Make-A-Wish Foundation, a nonprofit that grants “wishes” to critically ill children. Unlike the usual requests for celebrity visits or vacations, Rebecca’s wish was to speak with a medical philanthropist to help her start a charity for other children with pancreatitis. That charity was named Rebecca’s Wish. Now in its 5th year, it has raised over $3 million, trained five pediatric endoscopists, and helped countless patients and their families with hospital living costs.
Last summer, Rebecca’s Wish partnered with the National Pancreas Foundation to start the first-ever summer camp for children suffering from pediatric pancreatitis. This was the first camp many of the children could attend, due to their medical needs. They had round-the-clock care from nurses and physicians familiar with their needs, and counselors who had had their own experiences with pediatric pancreatitis, including Rebecca.
Rebecca’s Wish is just getting started. Rebecca’s hopes for the organization’s future include training more medical specialists, helping patients receive the care they need for secondary illnesses, and improving mental and emotional health of patients.
BHFSA’s goal is to improve health in Bexar County and seven contiguous counties. This has been accomplished through the giving of over $100 million in grants to area nonprofit organizations since 2004.
