The spirit of Christmas came early to Wolfson Children’s Hospital this year when Santa Claus made a special mid-summer visit to distribute toys donated by generous community members for Christmas in July. The 13th annual toy and donation drive, presented by Subaru of Jacksonville, lasted the entire month of July, with Santa making his special visit on July 31.
During this year’s Christmas in July, Jacksonville community members donated more than 1,300 toys. Additionally, throughout July generous donors gave more than $13,000 in financial gifts online. The funds will be used to purchase toys for Wolfson Children’s patients.
Subaru of Jacksonville collected toys at their showroom on St. Johns Bluff Road throughout the month and delivered those with Santa on July 31. In addition to thousands of dollars’ worth of toys from the community, staff and ownership, the dealership contributed $25,000 to support the Child Life department.
“The toys we collect in our showroom are much more than just items — they are symbols of smiles and comfort for the wonderful patients at Wolfson Children’s Hospital,” said Phil Porter Jr., executive management with Subaru of Jacksonville. “We cherish the opportunity to play a small role in the joy these gifts bring to the children, no matter the season.”
At Wolfson Children’s, certified child life specialists and master’s-prepared music therapists use toys and instruments as tools to help children understand their conditions and prepare for medical procedures such as blood draws and MRIs. By easing stress and anxiety, they help kids gain a sense of control in the hospital and Emergency Department environments.
Christmas in July allows child life specialists and music therapists to restock their toy shelves and identify their most needed items to continue their mission of making a patient’s experience more pleasant.
“These donations are so important as our child life specialists and music therapists use toys to not only comfort children in the hospital, but also to meet cognitive and physical developmental goals during their hospital stay,” said Susan Kinnebrew, director of Family Support Services at Wolfson Children’s. “Our whole team is incredibly grateful to the community for continuing to support our patients and our caregiving efforts as we help children understand their treatment and process their feelings and emotions.”
“We are so grateful for the continued generosity and stewardship of our Northeast Florida community, from individuals who donated online or dropped off toys, to organizations and businesses like Subaru of Jacksonville that sponsored the drive,” said Allegra C. Jaros, president of Wolfson Children’s Hospital. “The toy and monetary donations from Christmas in July allow our Family Support Services team to bring joy to all our patients and to support them throughout their healing journey.”
Those who wish to donate toys year-round can do so by going to the Wolfson Children’s Hospital Amazon wish list. To make a financial contribution to Wolfson Children’s Hospital throughout the year, which allows Child Life and music therapy teams to purchase the toys and musical instruments that are needed most, go to wolfsonchildrens.com/give.
