INDIANAPOLIS — This month the Starlight Children's Foundation launched its Power of Play campaign to raise awareness of the healing power of play for kids in hospitals and their families and raise funds to support its mission.
Starlight is a non-profit that offers their program free of charge to 700 hospitals. One of the things they provide are Radio Flyer Hero Wagons to places like Peyton Manning's Children's Hospital.
The wagons are designed with mobility and hospitalization in mind, featuring medical-grade fabric for easy cleaning, seat belts and padded seats for safety and comfort, and an IV attachment that allows any child to enjoy a ride and explore beyond their hospital room.
On Tuesday, 4-year-old Kiara is finishing up one of her treatments at PMCH. In September 2022, Kiara was diagnosed with Leukemia.
"Because she has down syndrome we’ve been inpatient for three part of, at least three months of treatments just due to her diagnosis because she's more likely to get ill," said Janet Dilger, Kiara's mom.
During her time in the hospital, riding in the red wagon became one of Kiara's favorite activities.
"Especially when she was really tired she could get out and have some mobility. We’d go to the nurses station, go by the playground," said Dilger. "Seeing the other patients and waving through the door so it helped make a sense of community when we were in patient."
Starlight provides toys, games and hospital gowns. They say each program is carefully crafted to address the unique needs of children in hospitals; bringing comfort, distraction, and a sense of normalcy during the moments when they may feel overwhelmed, anxious, or stressed.
"Happy kids tend to heal faster and get over complications," said Viktoria De Jong with Starlight.
Community members can also play a part in the Power of Play story by visiting Starlight.org/play [starlight.org]
