Western's Tate Hartzler one of 10 children selected to help raise money for children's hospitals nationwide

Jun. 1—RUSSIAVILLE — It was a golf outing last summer where Tate Hartzler showed he can fundraise with the best of them.

Tate hung out at one of the tee boxes and eagerly approached each golfer with raffle tickets and golf balls.

"You run up to them and ask them if they want to buy a raffle ticket or golf ball," he said.

Tate also had trading cards with his picture and story on them. The cards detailed his story as a cancer survivor. Tate, now 11, was diagnosed with stage 3 liver cancer when he was 2 months old. He had a tennis ball-sized mass in his liver.

Chemotherapy treatments were a success, and Tate is 11 years in remission.

By the end of the outing, Tate had sold two rolls of raffle tickets and dozens of golf balls all on his own.

"They just couldn't say no to him," his mother, Jodi Hartzler, said.

Tate got golfers to buy his trading cards, too. He told them one day he would be a famous baseball player, and the card would be worth a lot of money.

The event was the Speedway Miracle Tournament, hosted in Kettering, Ohio. It's one of the largest charity golf tournaments in the nation. Proceeds go to Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, a collection of 170 children's hospitals in North America.

Children's Miracle Network is a nonprofit organization that raises money for those hospitals.

Tate was an important guest at the outing. He was the Children's Miracle Network champion of Indiana. Children selected as a champion attend fundraising events, share their survivor story and advocate for research and funding.

Network hospitals in each state select a child to be that state's champion.

Tate's efforts at the golf outing left an impression on some very important people.

It led to an even greater recognition for the 11 year old who starts sixth grade this fall at Western Middle School. Tate was named a Children's Miracle Network Hospitals National Champion. He is one of 10 children across the country to earn the designation.

"Quite literally, he charmed them," said Alane Helmer, assistant vice president for corporate and foundation giving at Riley Children's Foundation. "That weekend they saw he would make a great national champion."

Riley Children's Foundation is the fundraising arm of Riley Children's Hospital, where Tate was a patient.

Being named a national champion comes with the opportunity to attend fundraising events, rub shoulders with nationally recognized people, while raising money for an important cause.

For Tate, that's cancer research.

If you're lucky, you might see him on a cereal box.

Children's Miracle Network partners with General Mills to promote the needs of children in its hospitals. National champions have their faces and stories printed on General Mills packages.

Tate's story is on boxes of Lucky Charms and Nature Valley Protein Chewy Bars.

"Those are bussin," Tate said, giving his endorsement for the peanut butter and dark chocolate protein bars.

The Lucky Charm boxes are found exclusively at Costco, another corporate sponsor of the Children's Miracle Network, but not in the Midwest.

"People are looking all over the country for him," his mom said.

Friends have tracked down boxes and sent pictures to the Hartzlers.

Several celebrities and professional athletes also partner with Children's Miracle Network.

Tate has met singer-songwriter Andy Grammer and sent happy birthday videos to Steph Curry, Marie Osmond and Derek Carr.

Carr, quarterback for the New Orleans Saints, replied to Tate's video with one of his own, giving him a shoutout.

While Tate is a big sports fan — he'll play anything his mom lets him — the gravity of mingling with the people he meets at charity events is lost on the child.

"They're people who will help raise money, and they're people who he can share his story with," Hartzler said.

Being a national champion took Tate and his family to Orlando, Florida, for Children's Hospitals Week in April.

He sat on a panel with other kids where they answered questions from the audience. All throughout the week, Tate told his story and advocated for children's health care.

"They were treating them like celebrities," Hartzler said. "They were the stars of the whole week."

Tate gamed with professional gamers, raising money in the process. Tate raises money through Extra Life, a program of Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. Gamers raise money playing all sorts of video, board and card games.

Tate has a goal of raising $5,000 through his Extra Life gaming activities. To donate, visit https://tinyurl.com/yjwn8f3s.

The week came with plenty of free swag and perks, too.

Big wigs from Love's Travel Stops, a partner of the children's hospital network, gave Tate and his best friend new pairs of Air Jordan 4s.

"He just randomly asked our size," Tate said.

During the weeklong event, Tate created a QR code for a fundraising link and sent it to everyone with an iPhone via AirDrop. More than once.

"He comes up with big ideas," Hartzler said.

Tate wants to put up billboards with a QR code for his Extra Life gaming page.

"A big ol' poster in California and Indiana," he said. "California because that's where all the stars are."

Tate dreams of getting his cause in front people like Elon Musk and billionaire YouTuber MrBeast.

Though he's 11 years in remission, Tate still deals with side effects from chemotherapy.

Spring baseball was a no go after an elbow injury, but he was still able to shoot hoops with his dad.

"I'm a good shooter in basketball, because that's all I could do," Tate said. "I have a perfect follow through."

The Hartzlers never know where the next Children's Miracle Network event will take them, but Tate's mom knows what the answer will be if someone asks her son to attend.

"He's never going to say no, and I'm okay with that," she said.

"If it's out of state, we're always going to say yes," Tate chimed in.

As the interview came to close, mom and son were off to Dairy Queen to shoot some promotional videos for Miracle Treat Day later this summer.

On Miracle Treat Day, Dairy Queen donates proceeds of Blizzard sales to the Children's Miracle Network.

Spencer Durham can be reached at 765-454-8598, by email at spencer.durham@kokomotribune.com or on Twitter at @Durham_KT.