Talking to her granddaughter, Jenna Bush Hager, the former First Lady, 87, reveals the loss she and former President George H. W. Bush experienced

Barbara Bush, former first lady and grandmother to reporter Jenna Bush Hager, has spoken about losing her three-year-old daughter to leukemia over half a century ago.

In an intimate interview with Jenna, the 87-year-old reveals the heartache she and former President George H. W. Bush, who is called ‘gampy’, experienced after little Robin Bush, Jenna’s aunt, was diagnosed with only two weeks to live.

‘I was combing her hair and holding her hand,’ Mrs Bush recalled on Today. ‘I saw that little body, I saw her spirit go.’

Born on December 20th, 1949, Robin was the youngest of three brothers; and two years younger than her brother, and future 43rd President, George W. Bush.

Jenna said, referring to Robin, who would be 63 years old if she were still alive today: ‘Gampy actually said recently he hopes when he passes away that’s who he will see first.’

‘It is who he’ll see first,’ said Mrs Bush.

‘She was quiet and gentle, and she had lovely little blond curls,’ she added.

At age three, Mrs Bush began to notice her daughter’s energy waning, and took her to the doctor for a simple check-up.

She said: ‘She was listless, she didn’t want to do anything, just wanted to rest, go out and watch cars go by, so I called the doctor and said, “Can I bring Robin out? I think she has spring fever,” and the doctor sort of laughed.

‘We went out and she had a few bruises on her and the doctor took a blood test and said I’ll call you.

‘She told that is Robin had leukemia. “What do you do for leukemia?” Well, she said, “You don’t do anything. She’s going to die,” and we said, “No, I don’t think so”. And she said, “My advice is take her home, love her and in about two weeks she will be gone.”

Instead, the couple took Robin across America to a hospital willing to try treatment on a child.

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A seven-year-old girl has shaved off all her beautiful red hair to show her support for young children suffering from cancer – including her little sister.

Hannah Gorsegner from Middletown, New Jersey, took the brave decision because she wanted to show her support for five-year-old sister, Natalie, who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in August 2012 and is now in remission.

Hannah, who said the day her sister was diagnosed was ‘the worst day of her life’, announced her decision to shave her head during an appearance on the Today show last month.

‘I’m going to shave my head,’ she said. ‘This is one of the ways I can help kids with cancer and inspire them to be brave.’

The shaving took place last Wednesday during a Shave For A Cure event held by the Arms Wide Open Childhood Cancer Foundation at the New York Stock Exchange.

Sister Natalie even got to join in and at one point used the clippers to shave her giggling sister’s head.

After Hannah’s head was completely shaved, she had glitter poured on over freshly bald head while the entire floor of the stock exchange applauded.

She wasn’t the only person to have her head saved that day and the others included several little boys and several businessmen who were supporting the cause.

The event raised over $350,000 for childhood cancer, and Hannah donated her red hair to wigs for kids.

‘I hope that someone’s going to be wearing my hair and that they’re going to feel happy about it.’ she told Today.

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You are moved, momentarily. You shake your head and offer a quick prayer for Lauren or, more likely, for the blessing of your own kids’ good health. Then you can’t find your keys and soccer practice starts in 15 minutes and you have to stop at the cleaners and your car has no gas, and just like that the story of Lauren Hill retreats to the big warehouse in your head, joining the rest of the jumble. We are so well informed, yet so poorly versed.

You are who Lauren wants to speak with. It is to you she is dedicating the rest of her brief and precious life. Have a minute?

“One January night, I was having a meltdown,” she begins. “I asked God if I could do anything. I didn’t know what He sent me here for. I wanted to know what He sent me here for. Whatever you sent me here for, I’m ready to do.”

Does she have your attention now?

“What keeps me going is remembering why I’m here,” she says.

Lauren Hill is here for all of us. She’s a soul engine, and all she wants to do for the rest of her life is remind us how good we have it, and that we need to make that goodness matter, for everyone. That would include kids with the cancer she has, which is inoperable and incurable and swiftly fatal and receives very little attention.

To that end, she is doing all sorts of interviews, locally and nationally. Her cause has become a phenomenon, its apex occurring Nov. 2 when she plays in her first college basketball game. The game was moved from Nov. 15 at Hiram College to Xavier’s Cintas Center to accommodate a packed house and Lauren’s distilled timeline. The 10,000-seat arena sold out in less than a day.

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Lakewood Ranch’s Dick Vitale received the inaugural Heart of Gold Award presented by the Pediatric Cancer Foundation on Thursday in Tampa.

Then he got a surprise.

Following the presentation, Vitale was informed that moving forward the award will be known as the Dick Vitale Heart of Gold Award.

College basketball and ESPN’s greatest ambassador was humbled by the gesture.

“Until I take my last breath, raising money and awareness for pediatric cancer research is my life,” Vitale said.

Vitale was selected because of his passion, commitment to research and efforts to raise money for pediatric cancer.

“The Heart of Gold Award is awarded to an individual or group of individuals that are compassionate about finding a cute and devoted to funding pediatric cancer research,” said Nancy Crane, executive director of PCF.

This past year, Vitale and his annual Dick Vitale Gala raised more than $2.1 million for the V Foundation.

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