On Saturday, The Network of Care hosted it’s 10th Annual Crab Feed to help raise funds for its program’s aimed at helping families in need while at a hospital.
The Network of Care provides meal support to families in crisis when their child is suddenly hospitalized. These families do not have the time, energy, or presence of mind to look after their own needs, so our Network provides for them and allows them to devote more attention to their child.
The organization was created by Jim and Janet Frazier after a tragic accident on December 16, 2000 where their daughters were in a car accident. The Network of Care program was formed in January 2004 to preserve the memory of Stephanie Marie Frazier, who lost her life in an automobile accident at the age of 20
Janet Frazier with Clayton City Councilwoman Julie Pierce
“This all started because of a kind nurse at Sutter Hospital that shared her lunch with us in a time of a crisis. We began with one hospital and grew to 60-hospitals within the state of California and Colorado. In the last year alone, we have seen a 17% increase in the number of meal bags requested,” said Frazier. “We also added two new children hospitals this year located in Southern California.”
Frazier noted that the organization does not have any paid staff and they are all volunteered saying that everything that comes into the organization goes into helping families in crisis.
“Through the general proceeds of this event, The Network of Care has been able to touch the lives of 187,000 families,” said Frazier.
Our Story
On December 16, 2000, our lives changed. Our daughters, Stephanie (age 20) and Lindsey (age 17) were involved in a tragic car accident. We frantically drove 1½ hours to the hospital, leaving with only the clothes on our back.
Our oldest daughter Stephanie did not survive the accident; our youngest daughter Lindsey was in critical condition. It was an endless day and night for us. Sometime in the darkness, Janet rose from her chair to check on Lindsey and nearly fainted.
A kind nurse asked when we had last eaten and we certainly could not remember. All we had inside was grief and worry. Since the cafeteria was closed and we did not want to leave Lindsey’s side, the kind nurse shared her sandwich with us, which gave us the physical strength we needed.
We think of those first hours and the nurse who did something so small, yet so meaningful. That simple Act of Kindness made all the difference in the world to us, knowing there are people that care.
The foundation was established in Stephanie’s memory to support others in their time of need. We operate exclusively on donations. Our caring network of volunteers purchase the food items, fill and deliver the bags to the hospitals in our network. Lindsey has recovered from her injuries and is very involved in this cause.
– Janet Frazier
Safety Improvements
The Frazier family has been tireless advocates for safety improvements for the section of Highway 50 where the accident occurred. Safety-related changes have been made to the highway resulting in a decrease of accidents. This section of Highway 50 is named the Stephanie Marie Frazier Memorial Highway.
For more on The Network of Care, visit: www.thenetworkofcare.org
