Hyperbaric Center for Children

We are Selama Grotto, a Masonic-affiliated organization. Our Chapter of the National Organization was established in 1922 and is deeply committed to bringing relief to children and their care-givers by promoting and operating the Cerebral Palsy Endowment. This endowment is a 501(c)(3) Not-for-Profit Foundation as provided by the Internal Revenue Service in a letter dated November 8, 1995.

The mission of the Selama Grotto Cerebral Palsy Endowment, Inc. of St. Petersburg, Florida, is to initiate, sponsor, support and promote activities and projects for the care, treatment and education of children afflicted with Cerebral Palsy and other special needs without regard to faith, creed, race, national origin or ethnic background.

Our vision is to expand this program by opening a HBOT center with up to 12 hospital grade Hyperbaric Oxygen Chambers and with the capacity to treat up to 72 persons a day and is proceeding at a rapid pace.

This is only made possible by donations to this program from individuals, civic groups and corporations, etc. All donations are welcome, no matter the amount and are 100% tax deductible. Contributions are to be made to the Selama Grotto Cerebral Palsy Endowment, Inc.

The results from these treatments are nothing short of miraculous. We see this on a daily basis. If anyone knows of a child who could benefit from HBOT, please contact us.

Hardy is a retired US Army Lt. Colonel and retired from real estate.  As a Captain, he commanded a company in Vietnam.  At career's end, he held the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star with one Oak Leaf Cluster, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster and the Vietnamese Honor Medal. 

At St. Thomas Episcopal Church, he served as Head Usher for many years, and six years on the Vestry, four of which were as the Junior Warden and one as the Senior Warden. He  is Past President of the Sunshine City Kiwanis Club and currently belongs to the Exchange Club of Northeast St, Petersburg.  He is the Vice President of the local chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution. 

He holds a BS Degree from Florida State and a MA Degree in Public Administration from Ball State. He is a graduate of the Command and Staff College and the Industrial War College.

He became a Mason while on a tour in Italy, and joined the Scottish Rite (32nd Degree) in Germany. Hardy is Past Master of Northside Lodge No. 283, F&AM, and Past Monarch of Selama Grotto in 2006. He is a life Member of Egypt Temple (Shriners).  He is the Past President of the Selama Grotto Cerebral Palsy Endowment, Inc.

For more than three years, my family has allowed numerous children to come into our home and get HBOT. Today, we have two of these chambers in our home and three more in other homes.  There is nothing that can't be accomplished.

It is our dream to open a Center for children who can't afford HBOT. To come to this center  with first class equipment, and under the direction of one of the finest experts in HBOT Dr. Paul Harch or whomever he selects. We hope that in the future this center  will also offer physical therapy, speech therapy and occupational therapy and possibly biofeedback. This all takes time and money and it will happen.

Lance Brubaker has been in Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy research for nearly 20 years. He also is involved in; Stem Cell Research, Cellular Therapy Research, Cellular Engineering, Immunotherapy, Cancer Immunotherapy, Chronic Disease Immunotherapy, CAM, Alternative Medicine, Functional Medicine and other ground breaking research in associated fields.

He is an innovator in the application and logistics of hard to treat diseases and conditions. Along with his peers, research associates and co-researchers, they create the “best approach” to what seemed to be impossible to reverse conditions.

Lance became involved with this research as a result of his affliction with Lyme disease.  Having raised and ridden horses from age 7, he believes he was exposed to Lyme disease before age 10.  In 1970, at age 10, he was diagnosed with Encephalitis Meningitis and placed into a hospital.  He continued to have problems through college and his 20s. In 1990, he was exposed with another strain of Lyme disease while horseback riding in the Adirondacks. This second exposure almost killed him causing several trips to the emergency room.  After 3 years, thirty two MDs and hundreds of tests that lead to misdiagnosis, no medical relief and worsening symptoms, Lance became critically ill and very dysfunctional.

In his journey to find correct medical treatment, Lance continually hit obstacles and was getting worse and worse. Fear for his life and overall wellbeing was in serious jeopardy. In 1993, he procured a hyperbaric chamber that put him into remission.  This extremely positive result led to further investigation and research. He currently has two (2) hard-shell hospital grade hyperbaric chambers and 1 portable hyperbaric chamber in his home and is involved in With numerous private hyperbaric centers.
 
Lance has devoted his life to Hyperbaric Research and currently does research in USA, Russia, and China and collaborates with other researchers in most major countries. He is involved with several organizations involved in research, clinical applications, grant proposals, promotion and many other aspects of Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy.  Based upon his experiences, he developed two organizations; www.hbotreatment.com that is a resource for hyperbaric treatment education on applications and www.netphysician.com that provides access and information to comprehensive integrative medicine for chronic illness.


Why is hyperbaric oxygen therapy not paid for by medical insurance in the US?
 
Medical Insurance does pay for 15 different indications in the US. But, there are literally a few hundred indications that are treated with hyperbaric oxygen.

Basically, what has happened here in the US is that big business got in the way of hyperbaric medicine and has delayed the US about 40 years behind other countries.  Applications, that should have been paid for by Insurance for years, are still not being paid for today. These are clearly proven applications that should be paid for by Insurance. 

However, the “system” is not going to be fixed quick enough for most individuals in the US. Thus, the need for organizations like the Hyperbaric Center for Children has become a necessity for most families who may not have the means for a choice of effective therapy for their children.
 
We used to call these miracles, what was happening with hundreds 100s of Cerebral Palsy, Autism, Brain Injury, Stroke and other children years ago, until we found out what other countries and individual private hyperbaric centers here in the US had known for years. These were not miracles, but more like regular outcomes. We were just behind in applications here in the US.
 
Today, thousands of these children are being helped every year. We are at the tip of the iceberg. There is a much larger population out there who are not getting the help that they need. With access, education, institutional and government support these things may change in the future. The Hyperbaric Center for Children will make that a reality today.

Hyperbaric Therapy is not an option or luxury, but a severe need that has been created for these families in crisis. The crisis is not somewhere in the future, but exists today.  If not for the Hyperbaric Center for Children and other similar organizations, most of these children would simply not be treated.  If not treated, they may not be given a chance to regain lost function and life.

Steven A. Culbreath, Esq.

Steve is a Freemason and active member of Northside Lodge #283 in St. Petersburg, FL.  

As part of his active participation in Masonry, Steve helps the Hyperbaric Center with the maintainance of its website.

When not acting as the Center's webmaster, Steve devotes his time to his legal profession.  Steve is an attorney, living and working in St. Petersburg, and operates a very busy, successful immigration law practice. His cases revolve primarily around business- and employment-based immigration, assisting clients with living, working and conducting business in the United States. He has been practicing in the greater Tampa Bay area since 2002.

He is a 1998 graduate from the University of South Florida cum laude with a B.A. in Political Science and Int'l Affairs and a 2000 graduate from Stetson University College of Law.