Bleeker the Rechargeable Dog

The headline says it all! (above, that’s Mike knocking out a great doodle for another happy client)

On Friday I drove to Hamilton to meet up with fellow NCS cartoonists Patricia Storms and Mike Cope. We were scheduled to spend the afternoon drawing comics for patients and families at the McMaster Children’s Hospital. Inside the hospital, Ronald McDonald House operates a family activity room where parents and kids can relax and hopefully take a break and spend time together. This was our first try at this (for us and the staff at RMH) and to say it went well would be an understatement.

Over the course of the afternoon we drew everything that was thrown at us…superheroes, portraits,  princesses, rhinos, real estate agents, crazy fish and hot rod hospital beds. If the kids were able to, they put pen to paper right along with us. It was great to see a kid and a parent sit down stressed and exhausted and maybe for the first time that day, smile at a goofy drawing.

Right at the end of the day a kid, his dad and his grandfather came in and hesitantly asked if we still had time for one more drawing. He sat down with his IV pole next to me and I asked what he’d like me to draw. He was probably about 8 or 9 years old and (most likely from medication) in a fog. He couldn’t think of anything and for some reason I drew a blank too. So, finally, I just started doodling. He sat there pretty motionless while I floundered away drawing robots, snakes, toads and in the middle, him in a kung fu pose. After the page was full I handed it over to him. He quietly looked at it and then, as if out of nowhere, exclaimed “this is great!” Everyone around was caught off guard by this sudden, strong, bright voice and laughed. I was stunned myself. It wasn’t that my drawing was so great it was just that, probably, for the first time that day, he had some fun. It was a great way to end the afternoon and definitely made future visits a certainty.

Here are some more pictures of the day. Many thanks to Mike and Patricia! You couldn’t ask for two more fun folks to hang out with! (I had a blast just getting to watch them draw!)

…a drawing of the evil DR. Carrot!

Mike’s Super Rhino!

Patricia surrounded by rabbit hipsters!

The fish that didn’t make it into Finding Nemo…

I was tempted to swipe Mike’s Charlie Brown lunchbox…

Next Friday I am very excited to join fellow NCS cartoonists Mike Cope and Patricia Storms at the McMaster Children’s Hospital,  Ronald McDonald House in Hamilton. We’ll be there in the afternoon, drawing comics for patients and their families. Mike has done a fantastic job organizing things and even put together the great poster above. It’s always fun hanging out with Mike and Patricia and since they both have way more experience drawing for groups I’m really happy to be tagging along with them. Also fellow King Features cartoonist Sandra Bell-Lundy of Between Friends will be hosting a future “comics coffee talk” with parents of patients. Hopefully these will be the first of many such events with RMH!

If you’re a family staying at the hospital or know one, please spread the word. Should be a fun time and I’ll post some pictures up here when I get back home.