Readout for Second Lady Karen Pence's Visit to Children's National Health System in Washington, DC

Today, Second Lady Karen Pence, joined by spouses of United States Senators, visited the Tracy's Kids Art Therapy Program at Children's National Health System in Washington, DC.

Upon arrival, Mrs. Pence was greeted by Kurt D. Newman, M.D., President & CEO of Children's National Health System, Tonya Vidal Kinlow, Vice President of Community Engagement, Advocacy and Government Affairs, Noah Grove, 2018 Paralympic Gold Medalist, and other members of the hospital staff.

Following introductions, Mrs. Pence proceeded to the patient area of the hospital where she visited with young children and their families. She gave the children coloring books. Then, the Second Lady and the spouses toured the art room. Following the tour, Mrs. Pence and the spouses observed an art therapy session with art therapists and pediatric patients who are undergoing cancer treatment. Lastly, Mrs. Pence participated in a roundtable discussion with the art therapists and members of the hospital staff. The spouses also attended the discussion to learn about the Tracy's Kids Art Therapy Program.

Since 2011, Mrs. Pence has served as a board member of Tracy's Kids. In February 2017, Tracy's Kids honored Mrs. Pence with the Courage Award for her support of art therapy programs across the United States and world.

To stay updated on the Second Lady's art therapy program visits, follow the Second Lady's Blog Page. To stay updated on her events, follow her on Twitter at, @SecondLady.

About Art Therapy

Second Lady Karen Pence champions art therapy and calls the initiative, Art Therapy: Healing with the HeART. Art therapy is an integrative mental health and human services profession that enriches the lives of individuals, families, and communities through active art-making, creative process, applied psychological theory, and human experience within a psychotherapeutic relationship. Professional art therapists who are experts in human development, psychological, and counseling theories and techniques facilitate art therapy. For more information about the art therapy profession, visit https://arttherapy.org/.

About Tracy's Kids Art Therapy Program

Tracy's Kids uses art therapy to help young cancer patients and their families cope with the emotional stress and trauma of cancer and its treatment. Their service is provided at no cost to the children and families they serve at seven separate clinics: Medstar Georgetown University Hospital, Children's National Health System, Children's Hospital/Pediatric Specialists of Virginia, Inova Children's Hospital, Methodist Children's Hospital in San Antonio, New York Presbyterian Hospital and Children's Hospital at Sinai, Baltimore. To learn more about Tracy's Kids, visit http://www.tracyskids.org/.

About Children's National Health System

Children's National Health System, based in Washington, D.C., has been serving the nation's children since 1870. Children's National is #1 for babies and ranked in every specialty evaluated by U.S. News & World Report and has been designated two times as a Magnet® hospital, a designation given to hospitals that demonstrate the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty outpatient centers in the D.C. Metropolitan area including the Maryland suburbs and Northern Virginia. Home to the Children's Research Institute and the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation, Children's National is one of the nation's top NIH-funded pediatric institutions. Children's National is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels. For more information, visit childrensnational.org.