Daniel Rucker is a firm believer in the great work CHOC does for the community.
After all, the project manager at the CHOC Research Institute, who celebrated his fifth “Chocoversary” on Oct. 8, 2023, not only has experienced this great work while on the job, but also personally twice: once as a patient and, more recently, as a first-time father.
“The emotion that I feel most powerfully is gratitude,” says Daniel, who overcame a challenging upbringing to earn not only a bachelor’s degree but also a master’s degree — and become an associate at the hospital that cared for him when he was a teenager.
“I’m grateful that I’m able to work for an organization that puts families first, with children at the core of everything we do,” he adds.
Severe asthma attack
Daniel was diagnosed with asthma when he was 5 years old – the same age when he was placed into foster care, where he remained through age 11.
When he was a teenager, Daniel was hospitalized at CHOC for a week after a severe asthma attack.
“I remember the medical staff talking with my parents about the dangers of smoking around asthmatic children,” he recalls. “It impacted my family life after that as my parents made efforts to stop smoking and alleviate my attacks.
“That was the first time a physician ever took the time to explain to me what was going on with my asthma,” Daniel adds. “The doctor made sure I understood everything. It was the first time I felt that a medical professional saw me as an individual and not just as a patient. I received phenomenal care.”
Daniel hasn’t suffered a severe asthma attack since.
But he experienced a familiar fear after his wife, Brittany, gave birth to a daughter on Jan. 28, 2022.
Lydia came 5 ½ weeks early, and labor was difficult. She arrived having trouble breathing on her own because her lungs were not fully developed. A CHOC neonatal intensive care unit team intubated her at Providence St. Joseph Hospital Orange.
“I remember looking into my wife’s eyes and assuring her everything was going to be OK,” Daniel recalls.
“I just put my faith in CHOC and our team.”
A very good year
Daniel attended three different community colleges and spent 10 years at California State University, Long Beach, before earning an undergraduate degree in history in 2018.
That was a great year for him. He also got married and joined CHOC in 2018.
Daniel, who was born in Long Beach and grew up in Anaheim, was hired as an executive assistant to Kerri Schiller, CHOC’s senior vice president and chief financial officer. One of his big accomplishments was modernizing the filing system in her office.
After a couple of years working in CHOC’s C-suite, Daniel decided to earn a master’s degree in library information sciences. He earned it from San Jose State University in May 2023, five months after he transferred to the Research Institute.
Full circle
Lydia, now almost 2 years old, has been seeing specialists at CHOC’s High-Risk Infant Follow-Up Clinic and also sees a speech therapist because her language is a bit delayed.
Other than that, says Daniel, she’s doing great.
“I feel like everything’s come full circle for me,” he says.
Susan Muzila Katz, executive assistant to CHOC Chief Medical Officer Dr. Sandip Godambe, agrees.
She and Daniel both worked at the same law firm before coming to CHOC.
“His perseverance has been extraordinary,” Susan says. “I think being at CHOC for him puts his life in full circle and gives him the opportunity to try and be part of something that gives care to children that he missed out on himself.
“This is a special place for Dan that has more meaning I think than people realize.”
