December 20, 2007

Spreading holiday cheer over the air

During the holiday season, MGHers can tune in to radio stations such as WODS-Oldies 103.3 and WROR-105.7 for a festive dose of Christmas music. If they listen closely, though, they might hear a special reference to the MGH: Local musician James Melody's song "Christmas in Boston," which has received regular airplay both this year and last, begins its second verse, "There are wise men in Cambridge / Angels at Mass General."

The MGH earned the special mention due to the experience of Melody and his wife, Cassandra, with the MGH Fertility Clinic. Physicians Laura Riley, MD, and Jan Shifren, MD, worked with the couple through conception and eventually
oversaw the birth of their daughter, Reilly, in 2004. Says Melody, "Because
of how awesome Mass General was in this process, I felt compelled to include the hospital in my song." Melody also is donating a percentage of the song's sales back to the MassGeneral Hospital for Children.

The story doesn't end there, however. A former college friend of Melody's, David Ryan, heard the song on the radio and contacted him after many years to tell him about his own experience with the "angels at Mass General." Ryan's wife, Beth, was due to undergo surgery at the MGH for a thyroid condition and was very anxious in the days leading up to the procedure. To calm her fears, a family friend sent over a package containing a porcelain angel and this note: "You'll be in good hands, for there truly are angels at Mass General."

For more information or to hear the song, access www.james-melody.com.