Tag: Polar Express

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NEW CHALLENGES, SAME HOLIDAY EVENT!

Like all other aspects of life, the hospital’s annual Polar Express week will change due to COVID19. This has been the signature event originated and supported by Bright Happy Power for oncology and transplant patients on several units of Children’s Hospital Boston.

This year, all celebrations take place bedside with family-only, supported by staff. Visitors and volunteers are not permitted.

As well, we have been asked to change the nature of the donations. The greatest needs are for everyday essentials and comfort items for patients, parents and siblings. We will provide funds to be used by hospital staff to develop a variation on Polar Express week that meets family needs while continuing to offer fun as well.

Additionally, the hospital cannot permit external donations of any items this year, but must order all the supplies from their own vendors. Your donations to Bright Happy Power will bring holiday cheer to the bedside of pediatric cancer and hematology patients.

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Polar Express Celebration at Childrens Hospital Boston

In early December, patients and families at Childrens Hospital Boston enjoy the start of a week-long winter festival that highlights the Christmas book Polar Express. The event also includes several days of interactive holiday crafts and activities, and culminates with distribution of “Believe” brass sleigh bells.

This tradition began several years ago, and remains our annual program at the hospital for pediatric cancer and transplant patients, siblings, and families. The festival has expanded to include additional units, with contributions of pajamas, slippers and other essentials by many organizations.

We thank the Trustees of Reservations for welcoming our exhibit at the annual Christmas open house at the Crane Estate in Ipswich, MA. That exhibit is underwritten by the Institution for Savings, whose sponsorship then allows us to fund and organize this Polar Express event at Children’s Hospital Boston.

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Decorating at Castle Hill Brings Holidays to the Hospital

Every year we decorate with origami cranes, hand-folded by local volunteers, for Christmas at Castle Hill on the Crane Estate, a Trustees of Reservations property in Ipswich, MA.

Each year, the stately home with its sweeping grounds, overlooking  Plum Island Sound and Atlantic Ocean, tantalizes visitors with Christmas-themed lights and flourishes. Several florists and decorators volunteer to create customized arrangements and vignettes in the historic rooms on the first and second floors. Visitors can imagine sitting down at the dining table,  stepping into a veritable wonderland, or slipping upstairs for a private moment in the bedroom. Fresh floral creativity and decorative installations draw out the holiday theme. Every year, our organization decorates the grand staircase.

This year we’re welcoming “Christmas by the Sea.” Bright Happy Power is filling the grand staircase with starfish, flowing currents of ribbon, air bubbles, and a swirl of paper birds. Watch for photos!

This installation is sponsored by Institution for Savings. Their underwriting of the Christmas event at Castle Hill allows Bright Happy Power to provide winter holiday programming at Children’s Hospital Boston. The hospital’s holiday program — kick-started by Bright Happy Power and inspired by the book and  movie Polar Express — has become a hospital-wide event during December. From the original one-day party on the oncology and stem cell/bone marrow transplant wings, it has expanded to several days of festive activities and is celebrated throughout the hospital’s inpatient units.

This hospital holiday event, funded by the sponsorship of our installation at Castle Hill, brings hope and happiness  to pediatric patients and their families during the winter season! What a wonderful trade-off: our volunteers spend a few days  decorating for Christmas, in turn Bright Happy Power provides the launch-point for a much-cherished holiday celebration at the hospital! One specialists calls it her favorite week of the year at the hospital.

Every paper bird folded, every dollar donated, and every wish bell delivered … makes a difference to children and families who need the opportunity to BELIEVE!