This episode is with Robyn Raphael, Director of Corporate Relations at St. Baldrick's Foundation. As the largest private funder of childhood cancer research grants, the St. Baldrick’s Foundation believes that kids are special and deserve to be treated that way. In 2016, Sport Clips Haircuts proudly signed on as St. Baldrick’s’ first National Partner, committing to give more than $1 million dollars in support of childhood cancer research over the next three years. In this podcast, Robyn details her experience as a mother of a young son who battled neuroblastoma, the "sneaky cancer". She walks us through his diagnosis, treatment and what his death ultimately inspired her to do. For more information, visit: www.sportclips.com/sbf
| Episode Air Date |
Guest Name |
Guest Title |
Topic(s) |
| July 15, 2019 |
Robyn Raphael |
Director of Corporation Relations |
The importance of hope during the trauma of childhood cancer |
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Transcription:
Chad Jordan: Well, hey, everybody. This is Chad Jordan from Sport Clips. I'm the Director of Marketing and this is another edition of our Hall of Fame Podcast. Thank you so much for joining us. We have a series on our podcast called Haircuts With Heart, and that series looks at some of the charitable partnerships that we have, some of the causes that we support. This is going to be another episode in that series because we're sitting down with one of the big wigs, one of our favorite people at one of our favorite partners, St. Baldrick's Foundation. In fact, before I go any further, I'm going to go ahead and have her introduce herself. Tell us your name, your role, and how long your drive was to get here today. Why don't you tell us that?
Robyn Raphael: I'm Robyn Raphael, I'm the Director of Corporate Relations for The St. Baldrick's Foundation. It only took me not even quite 30 minutes, Chad [crosstalk 00:01:00]-
Chad Jordan: Oh, all right. Okay, excellent.
Robyn Raphael: I live in the neighborhood, so it was [crosstalk 00:01:04]-
Chad Jordan: That's excellent. By the way, for those watching us on YouTube, hello. We are in the Sacramento, California, area and I needed to be up here for a couple of purposes and Robyn was gracious enough to make it. I guess not that far of a drive, but on a Friday. I'm worried about the traffic on the way back for her. We will try to wrap this up and not go too long. For those of you that are familiar with St. Baldrick's, you've probably seen some of the things that we've done at Sport Clips. For those that aren't familiar with it, it's the leading... I'm going to see if I can get this right, and you're going to correct me if I'm not. The leading research fundraising organization for children's cancer. Is that-
Robyn Raphael: You're on the track. You're on the track.
Chad Jordan: Get me back on the track. Exactly what is St. Baldrick's all about?
Robyn Raphael: We are the largest private funder of childhood cancer research grants worldwide. We're only second to the U.S. government.
Chad Jordan: Excellent. What Sport Clips does with St. Baldrick's is I believe we were the first national partner with St. Baldrick's. Is that right? Back in 2016 [crosstalk 00:02:19]-
Robyn Raphael: Correct.
Chad Jordan: I believe we pledged a million dollars over the course of three years, which I believe we have now re-upped our three years, as our first three years is up. We've re-upped and all across the country our stores help raise money, we do Brave The Shave events where people can get pledges and shave their head. I've actually emceed a couple of those and I had a good time raising money. Also, our stylists and team members, our barbers, will pitch in and actually cut hair for those donations. A ton of activity and that's at the local level, and then nationally, Sport Clips itself actually does some pretty cool things.
Chad Jordan: What exactly is your role with St. Baldrick's? At the top, you gave us your title, but can you walk me through a little bit about what you do there?
Robyn Raphael: Sure, sure. I've been with the Foundation... this month is my five-year anniversary with the Foundation, but I feel like I grew up in the Foundation. We can talk about that, but I am the Director of Corporate Relations, so I handle all of our corporate partners. That's all of our partners that have corporate head-shaving events as well as our cause marketing partners, and I handle all the different partnerships there in between. I also steward our partners, make sure that they're happy and it's mutually beneficial for both of us.
Chad Jordan: Now, you've been to... I know you were at our national convention, which we call Huddle. You were there this year, obviously. That's where I first met you. Had you been to others? Or did you come to the Brave The Shave event that we did at our national convention years ago? Or [crosstalk 00:04:01]-
Robyn Raphael: I didn't have the pleasure [crosstalk 00:04:02]-
Chad Jordan: This is your first time?
Robyn Raphael: This is my first time, and wow.
Chad Jordan: What did you think?
Robyn Raphael: Wow, like super wow. I was blown away. It was really nicely... not only nicely done, but I was super impressed with everybody that we met, all of the team members. Everybody was so enthusiastic and I would say, "St. Baldrick's", and they would go. "Oh, yeah. We know who you are", and [crosstalk 00:04:22]-
Chad Jordan: It's near and dear [crosstalk 00:04:24] to a lot of our hearts, mine particularly having had a brother that had leukemia. Your story, you've been personally touched, obviously, by childhood cancer. It led you to a life of... What was it? Were you going back and forth to Washington, D.C.? Can you give me a glimpse into why you're so passionate about St. Baldrick's and childhood cancer research and all that kind of stuff?
Robyn Raphael: Sure. Yeah, I sure can. I didn't really know what childhood cancer was, so we're going to flashback about 22 years ago. I didn't really know. I didn't really know children get cancer. I have a Mom... my Mom died of breast cancer when I was 10 years old, so I was acutely aware of cancer and what it does-
Chad Jordan: It was for old people. It was for adults.
Robyn Raphael: I guess that's what I heard, and growing up, too, fast forwarding into my adult years or all throughout I'm hearing all these cures, for breast cancer in particular. Never in my wildest dream, I didn't really think about children getting cancer. My husband and myself at the time, we moved up from Southern California to the northern part of the state with our two young boys. Our oldest is Keaton and our youngest is Kyle, and they're about a year and 10 months apart, so you can imagine it was [crosstalk 00:05:44]-
Chad Jordan: Wow [crosstalk 00:05:45]-
Robyn Raphael: It was [crosstalk 00:05:45]-
Chad Jordan: Irish twins, I think that's what it's called or something.
Robyn Raphael: I don't know quite how that happened, but we were pretty busy with the boys. New lives up here. We had some extended family that lived up here and boys were happy. Things were great. One day, Keaton came home from preschool, he was four at the time, and just said-
Chad Jordan: Keaton was your oldest?
Robyn Raphael: Yes, my oldest-
Chad Jordan: Then Kyle.
Robyn Raphael: And he just said, "Mom, my legs hurt. I don't feel so good." As four-year-olds, we kind of talk them through it, watch, observe. This went on and off for a while, but I think the biggest notice for me was seeing that he started to withdraw from play. We had a big group of boys on the street, and so very fortunate that they could tag team, end up at people's houses and play. One day, I remember he went out front and the boys were playing and he was just sitting on the grass watching. I walked over and talked to him and he said my legs just really hurt
Robyn Raphael: We started to take him to the pediatrician. I also noticed, in hindsight, a low-grade fever. I took him to the pediatrician. No, just put him on Tylenol. Watch it. That went on for about [crosstalk 00:07:01]-
Chad Jordan: No blood work or anything is getting done?
Robyn Raphael: Not really at the time. About three weeks of this went and I really... just that Mom's intuition, that gut, and always trust it, all parents, please. Took him back in and I said, "This is just not right. A four-year-old doesn't need to live on Tylenol and Motrin." At that time, they had us go in to see... they set us up to see an infectious disease specialist at UC Davis Cancer Center, or Medical Center at the time.
Chad Jordan: You're up here? I thought you were in Southern California, but you're up here [crosstalk 00:07:38]-
Robyn Raphael: No, we moved up here [crosstalk 00:07:38]-
Chad Jordan: Got it. I [crosstalk 00:07:38]-
Robyn Raphael: We had just moved up here [crosstalk 00:07:40]-
Chad Jordan: Missed that.
Robyn Raphael: About late '96, early '97, so we were up here and so we went in to see the infectious disease specialist. Wasn't sure what was going on, but definitely wanted my son to have a CAT scan, so they scheduled us for that. We were like, "Okay." We go in for the CAT scan probably about a week later and I remember it pretty vividly because I had to go in with him by myself. My husband at the time was at work. Went in, it was calm in this big machine.
Robyn Raphael: All of a sudden about an hour or two later, a swarm of doctors kind of said, "We need to talk to you." They start asking me all kinds of questions. "Have you driven through the state?" They thought maybe scarlet fever. They were sort of ruling out all of these things. The next thing I know... in hindsight, I didn't know that they knew that Keaton had a mass in his abdomen.
Robyn Raphael: They said, "We really need [crosstalk 00:08:46]-
Chad Jordan: They were trying to determine where that mass could have come from or what could have caused it, not whether there was one there?
Robyn Raphael: Well, at the-
Chad Jordan: That's what the lines of questioning probably was [crosstalk 00:08:55]-
Robyn Raphael: It was almost pre-question, where they were trying to figure it out, but then a specialist came in, felt his abdomen. I know all of this hindsight, but it was so long ago, I'm trying to remember the sequence of events, but they said, "We need to do some more tests, so he has to be hospitalized." We thought, "Oh my gosh."
Chad Jordan: Four years old?
Robyn Raphael: Four years old, so this is kind of what families go through. You're just thrust into it and you're like, "Okay, you call your friends, your family. Can you bring me a bag and stay over?" We stayed the night, and the next day they did what's called a bone marrow aspir on Keaton's spine, if you can imagine a four-year-old. They do put them out, but that was to determine what was kind of going on in the bone marrow.
Chad Jordan: This is not a transplant, this is they're taking bone marrow out?
Robyn Raphael: Yeah, this is just a test. It's called a bone aspir I believe, and so they're taking a sample of bone marrow to see what's going on. That very next day, Keaton's doctor, he was assigned a doctor. Dr. Rangaswami came in and he says, "I really need to talk with you. Can we go in this other private room?" Of course, we had somebody stay with Keaton and we go into this room and there's 12 medical professionals and it as a very small room. I remember it pretty vividly, and they're all around and I'm thinking, "You walk into a room and you're like, 'There's 12 people in here?' I don't think this is good." Proceeded to tell us that Keaton had cancer, and it's the kind of cancer, not that he said that you want to have at all, but he says, "It's really not a good cancer." It's a very aggressive cancer.
Robyn Raphael: He was diagnosed with neuroblastoma stage 4. It's known as the sneaky cancer. They don't know what causes it. They believe something goes awry in neuroblastic cells, but he was a happy, healthy baby. It can create its own blood supply. That's why they call it sneaky cancer. It usually attaches to the adrenal gland and his was wrapped around a kidney as well. It's creating its own blood supply, so that's why it can infiltrate into your bone marrow before you have these symptoms.
Robyn Raphael: As you can imagine, we were devastated. We were completely... you hear those words, "Your child has cancer", and our lives pretty much just changed completely forever. We went home and then you start telling your friends and family, right?
Chad Jordan: Yeah.
Robyn Raphael: I had to tell my Dad, Keaton's Grandpa, just... it was heart-wrenching. We literally couldn't look at him that weekend without crying and it was just... Then it just [crosstalk 00:11:50]-
Chad Jordan: He is home, too? Everybody [crosstalk 00:11:53]-
Robyn Raphael: We're all home.
Chad Jordan: Got to go? He didn't have to stay and begin treatment right away? Or-
Robyn Raphael: No, they sent us home, but literally within a week we had to be back and it was quick and fast treatment. It was very aggressive, but we pretty much at that time set our sights and said, "We can't do this. We can't live through his treatment without hope. We can't cry every time we see him." Everybody rallied. Our friends, our family, our community rallied for us and we just went through that treatment with him. He was a trooper.
Robyn Raphael: He had like seven cycles of chemotherapy, so you're talking in and out of the hospital. He had to have his tumor removed, but his right kidney went with it, and that was like a nine-hour surgery where the surgeon came out and he goes, "Well, I'm going to do the best I can to save him", but he goes, "It's kind of like peeling cement off of cement." We said, "Do what you got to do."
Chad Jordan: Oh, wow.
Robyn Raphael: He endured through all of it. To know Keaton, he didn't have time to be sick. He was silly and we just tried to make life as normal as possible. We did all of that, and then [crosstalk 00:13:12]-
Chad Jordan: I'm particularly sensitive to Kyle. What's going on [crosstalk 00:13:17]-
Robyn Raphael: Absolutely, absolutely [crosstalk 00:13:17]-
Chad Jordan: During all of this time?
Robyn Raphael: Kyle was three and a half, not [crosstalk 00:13:22]-
Chad Jordan: Is he able to process what's happening yet? Or-
Robyn Raphael: Not at all.
Chad Jordan: No, okay.
Robyn Raphael: Not at all. Kyle was more of a non-verbal. I call him my Bam-Bam. He's kind of like always action-oriented. We were really grateful. The preschool that the boys went to, they were like, "We are taking him", so we were really grateful for a big support system that just wrapped their arms around him. He did not know what was going on, but that doesn't mean that there wasn't effects that I can talk about later. He was taken care of. We did 24-hour care around the clock between my husband, myself, my Dad, my sister, all of that. We had a good support system. We never left Keaton alone in the hospital.
Chad Jordan: How long would he have to stay when the chemo sessions happened?
Robyn Raphael: We'd normally start with an outpatient... in the outpatient infusion room, and then go in, and I would say they lasted sometimes about a week, about a week and then-
Chad Jordan: Did he lose his hair every time? Or...
Robyn Raphael: It sort like when he lost his hair, then it was gone. It never came back, so yeah. For him, it was that and it started to fall out in patches and so we made kind... I don't know, it wasn't an official St. Baldrick's because I didn't know about St. Baldrick's at the time, but Uncle sat him in a chair and we put a cape on him and we made a big deal about it and we just shaved the rest of his hair off.
Chad Jordan: Did he end up embracing the fact that he was bald and...
Robyn Raphael: I don't know if you're familiar back in the day with Veggie Tales-
Chad Jordan: Oh yeah. Do you want me to start singing the theme song? Or we'll put a link to Veggie Tales.
Robyn Raphael: We do. His favorite one, and we have a video of it, he always used to goof around with his cousin, too, who was only nine months older. They were like brothers, so he's in the mix of all of this, too. They did a video one time and Keaton got out his hairbrush, of course, he's bald-
Chad Jordan: Oh, The Hairbrush Song.
Robyn Raphael: And he's singing, "Where is my hairbrush?" at the top of his lungs.
Chad Jordan: Nice.
Robyn Raphael: It is quite a scene [crosstalk 00:15:27]-
Chad Jordan: Good memory.
Robyn Raphael: He didn't have time not to be his silly self. We did all of that with that part of the treatment. The bigger part was yet to come. Our doctors here had a colleague. The clinical trial available to Keaton was going to be in San Fran, but they were watching the numbers on that. Keaton's doctor had a colleague, Dr. Lisa Dillard at Boston Children's Hospital, who was just opening a new clinical trial that was supposed to really be more promising.
Robyn Raphael: Keaton was fortunate enough what we thought would be the life-saving treatment. We went to Boston, and we had to go in September. It was all very quick. We had to go very quickly and he had to endure like an all-day phoresis, which is where they hook you up and they spin your stem cells. They look at those under a microscope and all of that because they're getting him ready for a stem cell transplant.
Chad Jordan: Which in the mid-to-late '90s was probably still groundbreaking, right? That was...
Robyn Raphael: It really was. Think about it from a technology standpoint and all of it, yes. It was foreign to us, let's say that. We were told, "Okay, now go back to California and he needs some more treatment, and then we're going to call you and when it's time you need to come." We were called literally the week before Christmas of '97-
Chad Jordan: Wow.
Robyn Raphael: And we flew to Boston, stayed at the Boston Ronald McDonald House.
Chad Jordan: Oh, we love Ronald McDonald Houses.
Robyn Raphael: Amazing.
Chad Jordan: They are.
Robyn Raphael: Amazing. Strangely enough, I am originally from Boston, so I have a lot of family there, so that was an amazing support system, but we took Kyle with us. We had to find child care for him there, so we found a home daycare center not far from the hospital [crosstalk 00:17:28]-
Chad Jordan: Because you don't know how long the treatment is going to be?
Robyn Raphael: No. You really don't know. You're going... one thing I point out is originally, Keaton's dad was going to stay back and work, and the nurses urged us, "No", we had to go as a family.
Chad Jordan: Was it because they weren't sure how much time there was really left? Or...
Robyn Raphael: I would say-
Chad Jordan: They just thought the whole family unit for support needed to be together during this [crosstalk 00:17:58]-
Robyn Raphael: I would say [crosstalk 00:17:58]-
Chad Jordan: Treatment period?
Robyn Raphael: With what I know now, and if you're thinking back 22 years ago, I know that's going to be novel, the internet was not the internet. I was even searching for all kinds of articles about neuroblastoma and I couldn't. I had to go to the medical library at UC Davis to just... I felt then they were shielding a little bit about the severity and the survival rates, so they wanted us to be together I think for that reason.
Chad Jordan: Had they even given you kind of a timeline on, "Here's what he may be looking at if things don't progress and there isn't a recovery? He's got [crosstalk 00:18:35]-
Robyn Raphael: No [crosstalk 00:18:35]-
Chad Jordan: "Three to six months?" They couldn't even speculate?
Robyn Raphael: We didn't go there, and I'm really grateful to our medical team for not going there. They could see.. they were as much focused on hope, the best medicine, and this kid is going to make it, and that's where our heads were completely. We were not... in the back of your mind [crosstalk 00:18:56] as a parent [crosstalk 00:18:56]-
Chad Jordan: When you don't sleep at night and it's [crosstalk 00:18:58]-
Robyn Raphael: It was there, but we fought it off pretty hard. We were very hopeful that Keaton was going to make it. We ended up getting called up and very strangely, his first transplant was on Christmas Eve, and on Christmas Eve to just say what it is, I'm thinking it's some big, grandiose and his doctor comes in and he kneels by Keaton and says, "This is your medicine and we're going to do this." Hooks up a little IV bag and puts the stem cells in.
Chad Jordan: It wasn't [crosstalk 00:19:34]-
Robyn Raphael: It was very [crosstalk 00:19:35]-
Chad Jordan: He didn't go under. There wasn't a nine-hour operation this time.
Robyn Raphael: No, as a matter of fact, I sat right there and staff... we were in isolation, by the way, so you know that your immune system is brought down to zero and we were in isolation. We spent the night there. He wasn't very happy about that, as you can imagine.
Chad Jordan: On Christmas Eve. Was he worried that Santa wasn't going to be able to deliver gifts in the hospital? Or-
Robyn Raphael: I think it wasn't even that. I think at that point he was far away from home at that time. He wanted to be with his friends and swim in his Grandpa's pool. He was kind of stuck in this hospital and, of course, Santa did come, but I couldn't even get him... at that moment, it was scary to me when I couldn't even have him be happy about Christmas. That was a moment that sticks with me.
Robyn Raphael: He had some complications with that transplant. He was slated to do two. It was called a tandem transplant, so they sent us home for 10 days at Ronald McDonald House, but we still had to be in isolation, so we made the best of it. We took him out. We could go out, but we were the crazy California family that went bundled up and went in the snow in the front of Ronald McDonald House and built a snowman. They probably thought we were [crosstalk 00:20:56]-
Chad Jordan: The only ones out there.
Robyn Raphael: We're the only ones. Everybody [crosstalk 00:20:58]-
Chad Jordan: You were in isolation [crosstalk 00:20:58]-
Robyn Raphael: Everybody was looking in the window going... it's an amazing... I remember that very much, and so then we had to go back in and-
Chad Jordan: This is still December? Or is this now into January?
Robyn Raphael: We are moving into late January at this point in time.
Chad Jordan: Now, you've been at the Ronald McDonald House for over a month?
Robyn Raphael: Yeah, mid-January [crosstalk 00:21:21] and so we had to go back in-
Chad Jordan: '98? Timeline, are we now into 1998?
Robyn Raphael: Yes we are. We are in 1998 and they had to do another stem cell transplant, but this protocol also required... to show you the levels of toxicity and harshness that they did, it required a week-long twice-a-day radiation, which is [crosstalk 00:21:51]-
Chad Jordan: People can't... could you be around him during the radiation [crosstalk 00:21:55]-
Robyn Raphael: I could [crosstalk 00:21:56] I was outside, but then we went back to our transplant room, but yeah, I had to be gloved up and we were completely gowns and the whole nine yards. I could sleep in the room, but I couldn't sleep like with him. There was a lot of rules.
Chad Jordan: There's a lot of cruel cuts with childhood cancer. That feels like one. Isolation from your baby boy who probably wants Mom to hold him, and here you really can't.
Robyn Raphael: Absolutely. I think about that a lot.
Chad Jordan: You wanted nothing more. Any parent... even when you thought he just had a fever, you're holding, and that's of course consoling, but then to not be able to in the grips of everything that he's battling, and for your own sake as a parent, just cling on a little bit longer.
Robyn Raphael: It's strange you kind of bring it up in that way because I just thought about that the other day. I think about things, obviously, but that particular thing is I wished I would have just said, "To heck with what they're telling me [crosstalk 00:23:00]-
Chad Jordan: I'll take the risk myself [crosstalk 00:23:00]-
Robyn Raphael: And I did crawl in there a few times because I was just like, "I can't, I can't." He went back in with all of that, and you can imagine, too, they're bringing us forms each time that you have to fill out, and they're reading you what can happen. As a parent, you feel completely helpless because [crosstalk 00:23:22]-
Chad Jordan: What is your choice? What are you going to say? "Forget it, that's too risky to save my child's life." Of course you're going to sign it.
Robyn Raphael: Of course you are, and you've got that going on. You've got all this fear going on and you're just trying to make the best decisions that you're given.
Robyn Raphael: With all of that treatment, which was very, very harsh, he started to develop some complications with his liver, so he was retaining water. There were a lot of things going on and they kept saying, "Okay, well, now we're going to fix it with this and we're going to do this." We were all together so we would convene as a family and bring Kyle in as well and they would play video games and we would try to keep things really normal, but we would switch off with him as well. Whoever wasn't going to be with Keaton would go back to Ronald McDonald with Kyle. We really tried to just keep it as normal as you possibly can.
Robyn Raphael: It was my night to stay. I remember I came up and the boys were playing video games and all of a sudden, I said, "Okay, guys, it's time for you guys to go", because we had a routine. Keaton had to have... you had to bathe every day and do certain things and I said, "We're going to get him going." Just about that very same time, Keaton just looks at me and he says, "Mom, I just don't feel so good." It was a very sudden loss. We had to call for the nurse to come in and [crosstalk 00:25:02]-
Chad Jordan: Could you tell just by looking at him that something was turning [crosstalk 00:25:06]-
Robyn Raphael: There was a visible sign that happened, and I immediately... it was very strange. Keaton also had a social worker that was just for him and his name was Frank and Keaton loved Frank. Well, Frank said he was going to come see Keaton that day and he didn't, and at that very moment, Frank walked in the room when all of this was happening. I grabbed Kyle the first thing and I ran out of the room because the nurses started to [crosstalk 00:25:34]-
Chad Jordan: You don't want Kyle to see what was going on [crosstalk 00:25:36]-
Robyn Raphael: I didn't, and Keaton's dad stayed and so I went out with Frank and Keaton and tried to compose and then say I'm going to come back in. It's a little bit fuzzy, obviously, because I've tried to not think about it a lot, but they were able to stabilize him, but then they had to take him down to trauma, and then we had to go into another little room and wait there. Meanwhile, Kyle was with Frank and we were down there and they just came in and said, "We can't save him."
Chad Jordan: Was he conscious when they're telling you this? Or had he already kind of slipped?
Robyn Raphael: Yeah.
Chad Jordan: You don't get a final other than that time that you had spent there, but-
Robyn Raphael: Right.
Chad Jordan: Not being able to say one last thing, hold him one last time-
Robyn Raphael: No.
Chad Jordan: It was really him saying, "I don't feel good", and then the actions and the ball was rolling at that point.
Robyn Raphael: That was it.
Chad Jordan: That is... what's the date? I know you know the date.
Robyn Raphael: February 20th, 1998.
Chad Jordan: This is in Boston?
Robyn Raphael: In Boston.
Chad Jordan: Now, you have to process. He passes in Boston. Funeral is held in California?
Robyn Raphael: Yeah. I had to make arrangements to have him brought home.
Chad Jordan: Had you done any of that stuff in anticipation?
Robyn Raphael: Not at all. Not at all. No, I did not.
Chad Jordan: Till the end you're thinking, "It's going to turn around. This is going to work. This is why we're here, signing all of these forms".
Robyn Raphael: Yeah, it-
Chad Jordan: Not giving up.
Robyn Raphael: No, we didn't. Then, you embark on your journey because I thought... I have a lot of faith. That's just the person I am, but I never thought we'd lose him really. I didn't, and that became its own... it was so difficult as you can imagine. We came home without him and Kyle had said to me [crosstalk 00:28:01]-
Chad Jordan: He's got his bedroom at home, and that was that you had to deal with. How long did you leave the room just the way it was?
Robyn Raphael: I want to say a while. I want to at least [crosstalk 00:28:13]-
Chad Jordan: Had he and Kyle shared a room? Or [crosstalk 00:28:16]-
Robyn Raphael: No, actually they had separate rooms and it ended up at one point where Kyle moved into his room and stuff, but we left it for quite some time. I still have boxes that haven't been gone through. There's things you just put in a box and I still have them and I've tried a few times, but I can't do [crosstalk 00:28:37]-
Chad Jordan: Had he reached his fifth birthday?
Robyn Raphael: He had reached his fifth birthday.
Chad Jordan: What's his birthday?
Robyn Raphael: November 24th. November 24th [crosstalk 00:28:44]-
Chad Jordan: He's a Thanksgiving baby some years?
Robyn Raphael: Yes. We were able to have a really amazing [crosstalk 00:28:50]-
Chad Jordan: His last birthday [crosstalk 00:28:50]-
Robyn Raphael: Birthday party [crosstalk 00:28:50]-
Chad Jordan: His fifth birthday was in California before he had to go to Boston.
Robyn Raphael: It was an amazing birthday party. There's a local gentleman around, I don't know if he is anymore, but it was Music Mike, and he played the guitar. He found out about Keaton and he's like, "I'm coming over and doing your birthday party."
Chad Jordan: Awesome.
Robyn Raphael: It was awesome.
Chad Jordan: Shout out to Music Mike if he's still around [crosstalk 00:29:11]-
Robyn Raphael: Music Mike. Good people in the world. That's what I will tell it is. We experienced many.
Chad Jordan: You had to do the unthinkable. You had to bury own child and walk through that grieving bereavement process. At some point you became an activist. This is probably the wrong word, so forgive me if that's [crosstalk 00:29:33] the wrong word or offensive at all. I don't know why it would be, but something in you decided more has to be done for childhood cancer research. I believe particularly the type that Keaton had. As you walked through this grieving process, does part of you go, "Hey, maybe it happened for a reason, maybe I have a mission to fulfill that I wouldn't have done otherwise"? What is the switch? Walk me through all of that to get you to where you are today.
Robyn Raphael: Sure. I would say it was about three weeks, so we're talking into March, and I just was paralyzed, paralyzed. I don't really know exactly what it was, but something kind of welled up in me and I thought, "Number one, I'm mad and I've got to do something constructive or I'm not going to be any good to anybody." It was just kind of like this epiphany, and I've described it like that because I started talking to people and calling them and like, "How are kids getting cancer?" Friends and family and I started talking about it and I started working with UC Davis and I said, "Are there any family groups? What's going on? What are people doing for kids' cancer? Like families and research, what's going on?"
Robyn Raphael: Just educating myself and it literally was within that month that I pretty much found out that there was really no local organization, not like there are now, there's a lot, and I said, "No, I'm going to start an organization and my goal is to help families navigate through childhood cancer." Ultimately, I wanted to see a cure for research, but really it was more safety net service for families in the Northern California area.
Chad Jordan: Had it been a full year? When did he get diagnosed?
Robyn Raphael: He was diagnosed June 20th.
Chad Jordan: Within-
Robyn Raphael: Nine months-
Chad Jordan: Nine months-
Robyn Raphael: That was it.
Chad Jordan: Not even a full year later, you've decided, "I'm going to start an organization." It's a nonprofit I assume.
Robyn Raphael: Nonprofit.
Chad Jordan: What was that and is it? It may still exist.
Robyn Raphael: It does. Keaton Raphael Memorial For Neuroblastoma originally. I wanted it to be [crosstalk 00:31:58]-
Chad Jordan: That's a mouthful.
Robyn Raphael: Eventually it was Keaton Raphael Memorial, and yes, we started that. I started it in my dining room with my friends and family and we held committee members and people just came. It was bigger than me and, like you said, did I think it was a purpose? I don't think I thought about it very much, but along the way I realized that I could have said no and I said yes.
Robyn Raphael: It didn't mean that I wasn't having a million different emotions, I just tried to move forward and use the skills that I had to... I've not been a nonprofit before, but my background is city government, public policy. I know how to navigate systems and work with communities and so forth and leadership. That's really what I did and we just told our story. We knocked on doors. My Dad, myself, and we knocked on doors and said, "We have this organization. My son died and we're trying to do some good in the world. Will you join us?" People did.
Chad Jordan: What is, not what was the purpose, what is the purpose of the organization? What were you setting out to do? Your safety net? Describe all of that for me.
Robyn Raphael: Sure. Sure. Provide what I experienced at that time many years ago was I could not find information. I couldn't find information.
Chad Jordan: Oh yeah, pre- really internet.
Robyn Raphael: Really pre-internet, so very primal on that. Providing families, connecting with families, finding them. Staring to work with hospitals so they could find us. We could provide them with [crosstalk 00:33:42]-
Chad Jordan: For that particular type of cancer? Or-
Robyn Raphael: All, all. I was really into all. I wanted to provide [crosstalk 00:33:47]-
Chad Jordan: Networking, when a family gets diagnosed with cancer, here are 10 other families that you could contact? Is that fair to say that's part of what-
Robyn Raphael: That ended being part of it, yes. A community, a family, letting them know that they had support and then also financial support. We really did what were called family grants at the time. I believe we started off at like $250 and then that moved up into a thousand or so forth in paying rent, believe it or not helping people fix cars so they can get their kids to appointments. It really morphed. We provided educational materials locally as well as we lost kids every year. My Dad was a carpenter, cabinet maker by trade, and I asked him to design these memory boxes, so we started to do that.
Robyn Raphael: I embarked on my grief journey. I read a lot. Books and resources became really important. People would give them to me. I would find them and I wanted to do the same for families, so we would put those in with a card and either... I couldn't really attend funerals early on and I really, to be quite honest, didn't have a lot of contact with families. I had somebody else helping me with that. I was still going through my [crosstalk 00:35:12]-
Chad Jordan: It was still too raw.
Robyn Raphael: I just wanted to be the girl behind the scenes. I just wanted to go get the money and put the structure together and help people that way, but the bereavement boxes I understand still continue and it obviously is something that's obviously needed [crosstalk 00:35:30]-
Chad Jordan: Do you have a website for your organization?
Robyn Raphael: Keaton Raphael is now Keaton's Cancer Alliance. They changed the name. I left in 2016. I just kind of said, "I'm-
Chad Jordan: You did [crosstalk 00:35:47] your part. You did enough.
Robyn Raphael: To take it to the next level, it's going strong, it's great. It's a regional organization in the Roosevelt area, all in Sacramento. Still helps families and hosts the head-shaving events that I started, which is [crosstalk 00:36:04]-
Chad Jordan: Oh, cool.
Robyn Raphael: How I sort of got involved.
Chad Jordan: Now, we're going to go full circle here.
Robyn Raphael: Full circle.
Chad Jordan: Which came first, chicken or the... the head shaving with the organization came first before you knew about St. Baldrick's? Or how does that all play together?
Robyn Raphael: I started Keaton's organization. I became connected because I was calling everybody I could think of to tell me about childhood cancer and what's going on. I became aware of an organization in D.C. called CureSearch, and they were organizing if you will an advocacy days for the first time. It ended up being about 50 parents showing up. Most of us had lost kids to neuroblastoma specifically.
Chad Jordan: Oh, wow.
Robyn Raphael: Basically they said, "Here's your t-shirt, we're going to go on the hill and you're going to tell your stories to legislators", and we did. We kind of cried our way through that. That particular group grew more and more and more and today has an alliance of many different childhood cancer groups of which St. Baldrick's is really a leader in that space. I went to Washington, D.C., twice a year for probably 15 years [crosstalk 00:37:29]-
Chad Jordan: Are you showing up unannounced to Capitol Hill? Or have you had appointments booked? I can't imagine a Congresswoman or Congressman turning down someone that's lost a kid to cancer. How does that work for anybody that wants to do something like that?
Robyn Raphael: Well, we were organized. By then, we had organized and CureSearch had organized us and so we had to hire a lobbyist and so we became more sophisticated as an advocacy group, but the goal was to get as many parents across the U.S. as we possibly could. I served as the California Team Leader, so that when families would come, those of us were briefed on, what is the ask? What is it we're asking for? Our initial I remember was, "Let's double the NIH budget", and we realized that didn't work, but yes, they had appointments for us. We would go in and it was... that became a community that when you go there, it was so empowering. I always felt like, "This is action", and so [crosstalk 00:38:33]-
Chad Jordan: Making a difference. This is-
Robyn Raphael: Grassroots. Going and changing, and that's where I met the founders of St. Baldrick's, so I was asked to-
Chad Jordan: They were doing the same thing? Or they were part of the rest of the committee? Or lobbyists? Or-
Robyn Raphael: Well, they were invited, so I don't know how they got there, but I was invited to a banquet where they were being honored [crosstalk 00:38:56]-
Chad Jordan: Oh, okay.
Robyn Raphael: Because these three Irish reinsurance executives were shaving heads and raising money for kids' cancer. It was fun and I had gone with my mother-in-law that year and we were just enjoying it and we were like, "Oh, this is great." We go back... we were going to get a glass of wine, so we go back to there and this gentleman walks up to me and he goes, "Hi", and he said, "I'm Enda McDonald", and he was one of the founders. I said, "Hi, Robyn Raphael. Where are you from?" Chit chat, and he goes, "You have really nice hair." I said, I like my hair." He said, "Well, would you consider shaving your head?"
Chad Jordan: There's [crosstalk 00:39:31]-
Robyn Raphael: I'm like [crosstalk 00:39:31]-
Chad Jordan: The other shoe.
Robyn Raphael: I'm like, "Well"... I said, "Well, I have an organization back home and I do family services but I love research, like research is the endgame for me." He says, "Well, I really think you need to host a head-shaving event and shave your head." I don't know why, I swear to you I only had one glass of wine, my mother-in-law was there right with me, but he ends up closing me on a cocktail napkin that I have to [crosstalk 00:40:00]-
Chad Jordan: You confirmed that you were going to do it.
Robyn Raphael: That I was going to go home to Sacramento... Roosevelt, California. I was going to raise $30,000 and shave my head. I committed to that and then the next morning at breakfast at our advocacy group of about 200 parents, somebody gets up and announces that I'm doing this, and now I'm like [crosstalk 00:40:24]-
Chad Jordan: Now you're trapped. You got to do it.
Robyn Raphael: Chad, I'm not going to pretend like... a lot of women, men go into this and they're like, "I'm going to do this." I was a big drug in there and I was kind of like, "What did I do?" I admit it wholeheartedly, but after-
Chad Jordan: You did it, right?
Robyn Raphael: I did it, but after I thought about it, and I came back home and I think people just felt sorry for me so they're like, "We're going to give her money. I'll join you, whatever."
Chad Jordan: What year is this?
Robyn Raphael: We are in... I'm in 2003.
Chad Jordan: This is you don't have the benefit of a Facebook event that you can put out there, which it's not cheating. It's wonderful, but that spreads the message so quickly. You're literally having to hit people up.
Robyn Raphael: I'm going to my Chamber of Commerce. I'll never forget that when I announced it at the Chamber of Commerce, you should have seen everybody's face [crosstalk 00:41:18]-
Chad Jordan: It was not a common thing-
Robyn Raphael: Oh no.
Chad Jordan: It's still not common, but it's at least heard of now. It was unheard of back then.
Robyn Raphael: I said I was going to do it. My heart really was into it when I... I just started getting into it [crosstalk 00:41:33]-
Chad Jordan: At that point you're [crosstalk 00:41:33]-
Robyn Raphael: At that point [crosstalk 00:41:33]-
Chad Jordan: You had counted the hair loss. You're like, "This is gone [crosstalk 00:41:37]-
Robyn Raphael: I'm doing it.
Chad Jordan: So I got to at least get the 30 grand out of it, and so-
Robyn Raphael: We did it and we only had I want to say at that time... I don't know if we had five weeks, maybe, maybe.
Chad Jordan: Did you make it... was it like a newsworthy event? Tell me about it.
Robyn Raphael: It was. Well, we had to find a place, so we found this great little coffee shop. I knew the owners and they were, "You do it here. Do it here." It ended up raining that day, so we did it outside [crosstalk 00:42:05]-
Chad Jordan: In California?
Robyn Raphael: Yeah, I know [crosstalk 00:42:05]-
Chad Jordan: I never heard of that.
Robyn Raphael: In March. Sometimes it rains [crosstalk 00:42:07] it'll rain in March. We put up this tarp. I remember it was windy and all of this, but the news crew came out [crosstalk 00:42:14]-
Chad Jordan: Oh, wow.
Robyn Raphael: We kind of did it all as a family, as a matter of fact, and we had [crosstalk 00:42:19]-
Chad Jordan: Oh really?
Robyn Raphael: Another cancer family of a mom at the time. He's still a survivor of the same cancer as Keaton.
Chad Jordan: Was he diagnosed around the same age as when Keaton was? Or was he older? Or what?
Robyn Raphael: He was, but he didn't go through the same kind of treatment, and there's really no... I do know a couple of survivors and there's no answer. His Mom shaved with me that year and I remember it. It was amazing and it was really the best thing I've ever done in my life. It just was. It just was meaningful and the best thing ever.
Chad Jordan: Have you done it since?
Robyn Raphael: I have not.
Chad Jordan: Once in a lifetime is enough [crosstalk 00:43:04]-
Robyn Raphael: Once is enough [crosstalk 00:43:04]-
Chad Jordan: No, that's [crosstalk 00:43:04]-
Robyn Raphael: I said I might do it again, and I do have colleagues [crosstalk 00:43:06]-
Chad Jordan: Hey [crosstalk 00:43:07]-
Robyn Raphael: I've done it multiple times [crosstalk 00:43:07]-
Chad Jordan: I'm not putting you on blast on this podcast. There's no cocktail napkin. You're not going to have to commit to it.
Robyn Raphael: There's only sour [crosstalk 00:43:13]-
Chad Jordan: You've got some snacks here, but no. I'm only asking because, did you participate in what you started? Did you participate [crosstalk 00:43:23]-
Robyn Raphael: Yes.
Chad Jordan: In other events [crosstalk 00:43:24]-
Robyn Raphael: Well, as a matter of fact [crosstalk 00:43:24]-
Chad Jordan: Like that?
Robyn Raphael: As a matter of fact, I started three other events that morphed into like seven events that are just... there's many events up here now, and so it really was that ripple effect of St. Baldrick's in Norther California. I think all those efforts... I don't know, if I had to throw out a number it's millions. It's millions.
Chad Jordan: For me, that's one of the reasons I wanted to capture on a podcast your story, not from start to finish because you're not finished, but just to show the progression and then how it started. 30,000 is not chump change. That's a lot of money, but that was just the beginning of now, like you said, probably millions of dollars. For any stylists that might be listening or watching to this or any team leader [crosstalk 00:44:16]-
Robyn Raphael: Oh, for sure.
Chad Jordan: Or franchisees who are maybe on the fence about participating in a St. Baldrick's event, just think... I know the one locally for us around the Santa Barbara County area, the impact that that's had in five or six years running and how much has been raised just from... it really came from one. She was on my daughter's soccer team. One Lexi Brown who passed away, but she started with her when she was still alive and what it's become now, and it started with one head-shaving event and now it's a full-on big deal.
Robyn Raphael: That's amazing.
Chad Jordan: What it was [crosstalk 00:44:57] yeah, I know there's more.
Robyn Raphael: Well, yeah. I just want to interject in there, too, and I know head-shaving isn't for everybody, I get it.
Chad Jordan: You're talking to one that it's not, so yeah [crosstalk 00:45:07]-
Robyn Raphael: You have good hair, too.
Chad Jordan: No. Well, thank you for that. You don't have to whisper it, you can shout out as [crosstalk 00:45:12] it's a hair cut [crosstalk 00:45:12]-
Robyn Raphael: What if we dye it green?
Chad Jordan: No. Yeah, well, let's see [crosstalk 00:45:14] I am happily married and I want to continue to be that way.
Robyn Raphael: I don't want to upset that.
Chad Jordan: I can continue to do podcasts about head-shaving events [crosstalk 00:45:23]-
Robyn Raphael: You're awesome.
Chad Jordan: Or whatever, but like you said, head-shaving is not the end-all be-all.
Robyn Raphael: If it isn't and I just want to do a little plug here because I think... my colleague Kelsey and I introduced this at the Huddle, POS System. It's inbound. September is National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and you know what? Since we sort of announced that, we've had many, many team members sign up and it's thousands. It's easy. It's a lot and you can get your customers involved, so the POS is really... I don't want to not [crosstalk 00:45:59] leave that off the table [crosstalk 00:46:00]-
Chad Jordan: Salon Ultimate is what you're talking about, and where there's a question I think you want to donate to St. Baldrick's and a client, while he's paying for his haircut, he's keeping his hair but losing some hair, but he's still having hair to walk out with, can give towards St. Baldrick's.
Robyn Raphael: There's a St. Baldrick's button. You just have to, say, do a campaign whenever you want to, and September is coming up. That's what we're talking about. The National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month [crosstalk 00:46:27]-
Chad Jordan: We're definitely going to push that, and I think this is the first year that we've done it, where we're going to try all of September to do it, so we'll make sure we get all those details out.
Chad Jordan: I know I'm running over your time, so I have a list of 10 questions that are going to be mostly light-hearted, but there is really one important question and you mentioned it earlier before I get to the 10. You had mentioned your grief journey and I know that every parent that's had to walk through bearing a child, whether it was an accident or whether it was cancer, disease or something that took the child, has had to walk that journey out and it's all differently.
Chad Jordan: You mentioned some things that helped you along the way and, obviously, starting the Foundation and organization and doing that was a big part of it, but what do you think for you, not that you'll ever... a day will never go by where you don't think about Keaton, but what do you think for you was the biggest, whether it was push in the right direction or helping the grieving process heal a little bit better, what do you think was for you the thing that you would maybe recommend to other maybe moms or other parents that are dealing with this?
Robyn Raphael: Gosh, there's so much, but for me, and everybody's journey is different [crosstalk 00:47:48]-
Chad Jordan: That's what I'm saying. What was it for you?
Robyn Raphael: For me, it's a combination. It's kind of doing my own spiritual journey, figuring it out from my perspective in how I can live with this.
Chad Jordan: I bet what you thought 23 years ago was different than what you thought 22 years and different than what you think now, so that's I'm sure...
Robyn Raphael: I think I went to counseling is a big thing. I'm a believer in it. It helped me sort through a lot. It helped me not blame myself. It helped me... all the things that parents go through, I think having a support system, and I know that's easier said than done because even family sometimes can't be there for you in this time and that's a reality and that's the last thing you need, right?
Chad Jordan: Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Robyn Raphael: You're already grieving, but it happens. Finding those support systems and the people who understand you and also understand that there's no right way to do this and let you be you and just support you in that journey. If there are people that aren't, I recommend you make some space for them because it's the toughest thing in my life I've ever done. I also want to give parents hope that... Sitting here today, I never would have thought I'd be sitting here. I never thought I'd find joy in my life again, and giving yourself permission to have that joy, it is not easy. I'm not going to say you get to the other side of the river. I look at it as a journey of like stepping stones, and finding those people who can take you forward. When you take those steps back, you're just moving forward. Find the way that works for you. I don't know if I answered your question [crosstalk 00:49:58]-
Chad Jordan: No, you did. I love it. It's a little bit like... My brother died of leukemia, so I grew up in a home... he was nine, I was six. I grew up in a home with grieving parents who... I don't know. I know a day doesn't go by where they don't miss Ryan, my brother, but for us, who my parents are now versus what they were when I was a kid and a teenager, like you said, there is joy, whether it's on the other side or in the middle of the river that you're wading through to try to get to the other side, there is hope that not every day will be February 20th. Am I getting the day right?
Robyn Raphael: Yes.
Chad Jordan: February of every year I know is tough, right?
Robyn Raphael: Yeah.
Chad Jordan: Probably Christmastime for you guys [crosstalk 00:50:50] because of all of that, but I love being able to sit and have conversations with people that are on this side of it as well. I've loved every minute even though some of this has been painful what you talked about. I loved getting to kind of unpack the story of a mover and a shaker in the St. Baldrick's Foundation world and childhood cancer research world and all that you've done, so thank you first for that.
Chad Jordan: Before I ask your 10 questions, I'm going to present you with... those that are watching on YouTube, you can see I know [crosstalk 00:51:27]-
Robyn Raphael: Yay.
Chad Jordan: I know when you were at Huddle, hopefully you got to hear Brittany Fitzgerald's speech. She's one of our coaches in the Texas region and her motto is, "Do it with passion or don't do it at all."
Robyn Raphael: Oh, I love it.
Chad Jordan: I'm going to give that to you because I feel like your passionate and you deserve this shirt. Not every guest gets one of these, but this is going to be for you, so-
Robyn Raphael: I feel special [crosstalk 00:51:45]-
Chad Jordan: You are special.
Robyn Raphael: That's awesome. I love it.
Chad Jordan: Can I ask you the 10 questions and then you can go fight the traffic and get home?
Robyn Raphael: Yes.
Chad Jordan: Question number one. If you had one superpower, what would you hope it would be? You can only have one superpower.
Robyn Raphael: This is a really hard question.
Chad Jordan: You want me to start with an easier one and come back to that one?
Robyn Raphael: No.
Chad Jordan: I thought that might be the easiest one because, you know...
Robyn Raphael: I want to save people.
Chad Jordan: You want to save people? Great.
Robyn Raphael: I want to save people.
Chad Jordan: You want to rush into burning... like all of that?
Robyn Raphael: Yeah.
Chad Jordan: That's great. Indestructibility. That way you can go save people. Number two. What is your personal motto?
Robyn Raphael: I have many, but I like live, love, laugh.
Chad Jordan: Live, love, laugh. I love it. I know you're from Boston you said and you live in California, but if you could choose anywhere else in the world to live that you've never lived before, where else in the world would that be?
Robyn Raphael: Oh gosh, I'm trying to think of every country. Well-
Chad Jordan: Yeah, anywhere.
Robyn Raphael: Well, I'm going to Greece in September, so it might be there.
Chad Jordan: Greece. I love Greece. If you could meet one celebrity, who would it be? We're going to put out good vibes so just in case it happens you'll be able to credit this podcast.
Robyn Raphael: Well, he's also my celebrity crush, so Jason Statham.
Chad Jordan: Fast and Furious. You're going to be watching his new movie that's coming out. Which words or phrases do you most often overuse?
Robyn Raphael: I'm sorry.
Chad Jordan: I'm sorry? Okay.
Robyn Raphael: It's a bad habit I was told. I need to stop saying it.
Chad Jordan: I don't think you've said it too much today, so you're working on your habit. What sound or noise do you love?
Robyn Raphael: Children laughing.
Chad Jordan: I like that. What sound or noise do you hate?
Robyn Raphael: Children screaming.
Chad Jordan: Great. I was going to get crying or screaming. Perfect. The yin and the yang there. This is a special question I wrote just for you that's different. No other podcast guest has gotten this question, but I was thinking about you and your life. When they make a movie on the story of your life, who do you want to play the lead character? Which actress?
Robyn Raphael: That is a tough question. People have told me that I look like Cheri Oteri.
Chad Jordan: Cheri Oteri? What's she from?
Robyn Raphael: She was from Saturday Night Live, but I know that that's not really...
Chad Jordan: I don't know which one she is.
Robyn Raphael: It was a while ago.
Chad Jordan: Do you want her to be the lead character?
Robyn Raphael: No, no. I want someone... No, of course not.
Chad Jordan: You want like a Julia Roberts or [crosstalk 00:54:37]-
Robyn Raphael: Yeah, she has to be blonde, though, so I'm trying to think [crosstalk 00:54:38]-
Chad Jordan: She's [crosstalk 00:54:38]-
Robyn Raphael: I'm bad with actresses [crosstalk 00:54:40]-
Chad Jordan: She's pulled that off before. Emma Stone could probably [crosstalk 00:54:44]-
Robyn Raphael: What about... oh gosh, Goldie Hawn's daughter, what's Goldie Hawn's daughter?
Chad Jordan: If you wouldn't ask me I could have told you.
Robyn Raphael: I know.
Chad Jordan: We'll just put [crosstalk 00:54:55]-
Robyn Raphael: I'm sorry [crosstalk 00:54:55]-
Chad Jordan: Goldie Hawn's [crosstalk 00:54:55]-
Robyn Raphael: Celebrity [crosstalk 00:54:55]-
Chad Jordan: Daughter, who was in [crosstalk 00:54:58]-
Robyn Raphael: Overboard? Was it... no.
Chad Jordan: No, she was in Overboard. I'm trying to think. There's one of these movies. 10 Things... How to Lose a Guy In 10 Days.
Robyn Raphael: Yes, that's it [crosstalk 00:55:07]-
Chad Jordan: My wife loves that movie [crosstalk 00:55:07]-
Robyn Raphael: That's her. I want her. I love her.
Chad Jordan: Next one, but this I think is going to be pretty obvious if we relisten to this podcast. What is your greatest achievement?
Robyn Raphael: Well, my kids are my greatest achievement.
Chad Jordan: I like that.
Robyn Raphael: They are.
Chad Jordan: Last question. If Heaven indeed exists, what do you hope to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?
Robyn Raphael: Well done.
Chad Jordan: Well done. Great. How about "well done" and, "Hey, Keaton, come here?"
Robyn Raphael: Yeah.
Chad Jordan: I like that one.
Robyn Raphael: Absolutely.
Chad Jordan: This has been amazing. What a story [crosstalk 00:55:53]-
Robyn Raphael: Thank you [crosstalk 00:55:53]-
Chad Jordan: Thank you so much for carving out some time to share your life with us and what you're up to now. This is why I want to document stuff like this for Sport Clips because what we're doing with St. Baldrick's, we're just scratching the surface so far of the limit and the potential that this partnership has. I hope that as our listeners have heard your story today and been encouraged by you that they think, "Hey, we're not going to let this be for not. We're going to go do some great things for St. Baldrick's, Brave The Shave events." Maybe not shave their own heads, but raise monies, do the stuff with Salon Ultimate and the POS System for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month coming up in September, but just really get involved. That's what our aim is here. Thank you so much for joining us.
Robyn Raphael: Thank you, Chad.
Chad Jordan: Appreciate you. Bye, everybody [crosstalk 00:56:50]-
Robyn Raphael: Appreciate [crosstalk 00:56:50]-
Chad Jordan: Hope you'll listen next time. Thanks so much.
Robyn Raphael: Bye.