Maria’s Garden Offers Respite at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital

Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital, a member of the Westchester Medical Center Health Network (WMCHealth), hosted a dedication ceremony for Maria’s Garden, a landscaped area of respite for patients and families. Just steps away from the hospital’s front doors, the 20,000-square-foot garden includes walkways, shaded seating areas, colorful flowers and shrubs, and family-friendly interest points, such as a lifesize chess and checkerboard, a giant teddy bear and a 6-foot-tall dog crafted by world-renowned sculpture artist Yoshitomo Nara.

“This serene and beautiful garden allows patients and their families to take a respite from their intensive treatments and have a few moments to be out in the fresh air to contemplate and play,” says Michael Gewitz, MD, William Russell McCurdy Physician-in-Chief and Chief of Pediatric Cardiology at Maria Fareri Children’s Hospital. “It also serves an important purpose in the healing process and reflects the medical center’s focus on a healing environment.”

Maria’s Garden fulfills the vision of Brenda and John Fareri, the hospital’s founding benefactors, and was made possible through the generosity of the Fareris, radio station 100.7 WHUD and the Morrell family. The hospital and garden are named in memory of the late Maria Fareri, Brenda and John’s youngest daughter.