The groups celebrated the initiative, which they launched in July 2025, at the Ascension Sacred Heart campus in Pensacola on November 18. Quint Studer gave the keynote address at the event. Families and patients who have benefitted from the collaboration were recognized or spoke at the event, including 8-year-old Brooklyn Boykin.
Boykin, who suffered from a rare immune disorder and was in isolation for the first 3.5 years of her life, was the event’s emcee. She got to share her story about overcoming the disorder with the help of the two organizations, and her mother, Chelsea Jones, spoke as well.
“She has about 12 specialists, so to have them all together is so much easier,” Jones said in a statement released by Ascension. “We are so grateful for the life saving care both Studer and Nemours have given to [Brooklyn] since she was born.”
“We’ve already seen the impact,” President of Studer Family Children’s Hospital Dr. Jason Foland said. “Faster appointments. New services like pediatric orthopedic surgery. Coordinated teams instead of families being passed around. Expert care, right here in your community. The collaboration isn’t the finish line, it’s the foundation. A blueprint for mission-driver organizations putting children first.”
“Since beginning this collaboration in July, we have seen numerous examples of the benefits of our combined efforts to advance the health of children in the Pensacola area. Our two organizations have like-minded commitments to keeping the health and well-being of children at the forefront. Together, we are able to leverage our clinical expertise and the Nemours Children’s Health focus on whole child health to create the healthiest generations of children, close to home,” North Florida President of Nemours Children’s Health Aaron Carpenter, DNP, MDiv, APRN, CPNP-PC and NEA-BC said.
