Texas Children’s Hospital Announces Opening Of Panda Cares® Centers Of Hope

HOUSTON (November 03, 2022) — On September 27, Panda Express and Texas Children’s leaders and staff gathered at the hospital to celebrate the announcement of the 10-year, $5.9 million commitment Panda Express has made to support the creation of an Exercise and Rehabilitation Program at Texas Children’s Heart Center, as well as the expansion of the hospital’s Palliative Care Program.

To honor this extraordinary commitment, the celebration included the unveiling of the Panda Cares Center of Hope Cardiac Catheterization Labs on the 20^th floor of the Lester and Sue Smith Legacy Tower and the Panda Cares Center of Hope Therapy Gym on the 24^th floor.

“It is a great honor to partner with Texas Children’s Hospital to celebrate its Panda Cares Centers of Hope,” said Da Wei Cheng, Panda Express Regional Director of Operations. He went on to say that Panda Express has donated more than $120 million to Children Miracle Network Hospitals across the country. More than $2 million of that has come to Texas Children’s, thanks to Panda Express® associates and guests, whose generosity helps change children’s lives, offering them hope for a healthier, brighter future.

The Panda Cares Center of Hope program inspires hope and promotes healing by providing specially curated programs that address children’s entire well-being, including their mental, emotional, physical and spiritual needs. These make up the program’s four pillars, which align perfectly with Texas Children’s commitment not only to provide the best medical care, but also to treat the whole child and address all their needs.

Texas Children’s Heart Center has named its program LAUNCH, which stands for Learning And Understanding New Cardiac Habits. The goal is to provide Heart Center patients with a physical and virtual space as a resource for individualized exercise programs, nutritional guidance, and physical and occupational therapies that will allow them to live full lives and maintain an active presence in their community.

“Having philanthropic support to launch a program like this has been so important for us,” said Dr. Dan Penny, Chief of Cardiology at Texas Children’s Heart Center. “We are all so grateful to Panda Express for making this possible and for partnering with us to give our patients the extra resources they need to help them grow and thrive. That is an incredible gift.”

Dr. Tammy Kang, Chief of Palliative Care at Texas Children’s, echoes Dr. Penny’s sentiments. “When we heard about the four pillars of the Panda Cares Center of Hope, it really spoke to us,” she said. “The wonderful support from Panda Express allows us to expand our program significantly by adding two full-time positions to support the health and wellness of our patients and families, as well as to provide grief counseling.

“People don’t really think about palliative care for children because, fortunately, most children are healthy. But for those experiencing serious or chronic illnesses, our goal is to maximize quality of life while supporting parents and family members who are caring for them. We do that by creating a team of providers who connect with patients and families and help them face whatever they are struggling with so they can live as well as possible.”

Panda Cares® Centers of Hope across the country are made possible by donations from Panda Express® associates and guests. Funds raised in-store and online at Panda Express benefit each store’s local community. Following a multimillion-dollar commitment to Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals to fund Panda Cares® Centers of Hope, Panda and CMN Hospitals have debuted Center of Hope locations at several hospitals in the U.S. from California and Texas to Hawaii and Washington D.C.