WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--This holiday season, hundreds of children will spend the holidays at Children’s National Hospital. The hospital’s mascot, Dr. Bear—a symbol of hope and healing that delights kids—is lighting up everywhere to brighten the holidays for patients and their families. Every time someone makes a gift to Children’s National, more than 300 light-up four-foot bears shine simultaneously in the hospital, at outpatient centers and at select locations across the Washington, D.C., metropolitan region. Gifts to this campaign support exceptional care for every child and groundbreaking pediatric research that leads to new treatments and cures.
“The Light Up Dr. Bear campaign provides a bit of holiday magic for our children and their families in a truly meaningful way,” says DeAnn Marshall, MHA, president of Children’s National Hospital Foundation. “You can see the delight on the children’s faces every time a bear lights up or when they hug a bear in the hospital. The experience brightens everyone’s day.”
The Light Up Dr. Bear campaign is Children’s National’s second annual winter holiday effort to illuminate the community with the spirit of giving. The non-profit institution is Washington, D.C.’s only hospital that specializes in kids. It also advances children’s health globally. Philanthropy supports the mission of Children’s National to deliver world-class care to every child, regardless of illness, injury or ability to pay.
Campaign giving funds care for the whole child and family, equipment designed just for kids, specialized care teams that nurture children’s emotional needs and unique spaces and programs for play, including art, music and pet therapy. It ensures that these special services are available for all patients—for children like Noah— a music-loving 2½-year-old diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. This holiday season, Noah rang the victory bell to mark the end of his treatment and celebrate that he is cancer-free.
“Noah is an easy-going kid, but even for him the hospital isn’t an easy place to be,” says Farissa Elvis Russell, Noah’s mom. “We are so thankful for his amazing team at Children’s National and for everything they do. Music therapy has been especially comforting for Noah. Even more incredible is how these types of programs are funded through philanthropy, which is why campaigns like Light Up Dr. Bear are so important for our children and our community.”
The Light Up Dr. Bear campaign runs through Dec. 31 to brighten the stay of children and families who can’t be home for the holidays. Bear locations also include CityCenter, The Wharf in DC, Bethesda Row, Pike & Rose in Rockville, Reston Town Center and Pentagon Row in Virginia. For more information about the campaign, visit https://childrensnational.org/bears#TheVideo.
Light Up Dr. Bear corporate sponsors include Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Interstate Moving and Storage. AWS generously supports bear installation and maintenance. Interstate provides in-kind logistical support for bear delivery and pickup at more than fifty locations throughout the region.
Give at ChildrensNational.org/Lights to light up Dr. Bear. Use #LightUpDrBear to light up social media and tag Children’s National. Give today. Show them you care. Light up Dr. Bear.
About Children’s National Hospital
Children’s National Hospital, based in Washington, D.C., has served the nation’s children since 1870. Children’s National Hospital is the nation’s No. 6 pediatric hospital and, for the third straight year, is ranked No. 1 in newborn care, as well as ranked in all specialties evaluated by U.S. News & World Report. It has been designated two times as a Magnet® hospital, a designation given to hospitals that demonstrate the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty outpatient centers in the D.C. Metropolitan area, including the Maryland suburbs and Northern Virginia. Home to the Children’s Research Institute and the Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation, Children’s National Hospital is the seventh-highest NIH-funded children’s hospital in the nation. Children’s National Hospital is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels.
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