Just before Christmas, the Starlight Children’s Foundation Canada brought a “Herb’s Secret Santa” event to Burlington’s Toys R Us to treat 92 families with critically or chronically ill children to a private in-store shopping session to spread a little holiday joy.
Besides having the chance to spend their Toys R Us gift cards, the children and their siblings enjoyed meeting Santa and some of their movie characters, having their faces painted with holiday designs, and receiving special toy packages with board games, crafts, and more from Starlight. Families came from Burlington and the surrounding area to take part in this event; ten other stores across four provinces also hosted private shopping sessions for Starlight.
The medical challenges and hospital visits these children face do not pause for the holidays, so this season can be particularly stressful for families with seriously ill children, and Starlight’s private shopping session aims to alleviate some of that stress by providing a fun, distracting experience.
Kids walked, ran, or wheeled through the aisles to make their picks from all the toys. From a child-size guitar decorated with stars, and a mini skateboard park to a super car colouring book, the children found exciting toys to take home.
Ear-to-ear smiles could be seen on the faces of all. Little faces were painted with pretty snowflake designs or reindeer features; kids happily posed with Star Wars characters and their favourite princesses, Elsa and Anna. Toys R Us mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe also made an appearance.
Starlight Child Ambassador Jack, who is 9 years old and has cerebral palsy, quadriplegia, and epilepsy, attended the Dec. 17 event with his family, including his mother, father, and little sister. Jack’s mom, Kim, says that the Starlight events provide “such a break” from their day-to-day lives, which, for these families, can include many medical appointments and intensive therapies.
Even seeing a Starlight event in the calendar is a catalyst for enjoying memories of past Starlight events, says Kim: “We often get to just…look forward to that, plan ahead, think about how exciting it’s going to be, and then the memories that we’ve had from [other] Starlight events, too.”
This year alone, Jack and his family have gone racing in race cars, ridden ATVs and a hovercraft, and felt lucky to be chosen to go on a Rocky Mountaineer train trip through the Rocky Mountains. “We were very, very fortunate…that was just the trip of a lifetime that has made our memories,” says Kim.
Despite having to go to hospital a number of times over 2023, having those beautiful memories from Starlight Foundation excursions makes it a bit easier, explains Kim: “…being able to go back through those photos and videos, even in the hospital…having those memories fills our hearts with joy.” It allows the family to focus on those great memories rather than “the really challenging issues or difficult procedures and therapies.”
Though Jack “lives a life of therapy,” says his mom, “…non-stop therapy and medical appointments,” and being confined to a wheelchair, Jack works hard to use a walker whenever he can. The family is also excited about a recent move to a more accessible house near Jack’s new school in Grimsby, which has been more accommodating than previous schools. While some renovations still need to be done for the house to be completely accessible, they are confident that they “will get there, as a family.”
Kim gets emotional when she thinks about what Starlight has allowed the family to do. After pausing to explain to Jack that sometimes she cries from happiness (“He always worries when I cry”), she says, “We try to give him the best life possible as parents…and Starlight helps us do that. Starlight helps give him experiences that he wouldn’t [otherwise] have.”
Plus there’s the feeling of community with the other Starlight families that comes from mutual understanding and participating in events together like the holiday shopping session: “Seeing the other Starlight families, it’s almost like a reunion. So that just warms our heart so much, seeing the other families, the Starlight staff, and just having a really fun morning together.”
Those warm feelings are shared with Starlight and Toys R Us staff. Kristina Hopp, Starlight’s associate director of communications, says that after graduating from university, she wasn’t sure what she wanted to do for work. But after volunteering with the Starlight Children’s Foundation, she “fell in love” with the organization and its mission of making seriously ill children smile and helping build beautiful memories for the children and their families. Only a few months later, Hopp was applying for a job with the charity.
As a company, Toys R Us has been in partnership with Starlight Canada for 25 years, hosting events like “Herb’s Secret Santa,” and raising money via sales of their limited edition annual Starlight Bear and in-store Star Campaign.
Says Heather Gallant, the store manager at Toys R Us Burlington, “We are delighted to work with Starlight Children’s Foundation Canada again this holiday. Watching children select special gifts this time of year is so exciting! For the Toys R Us team it’s rewarding to see our fundraising efforts come to life and support families in our community.”
To find out more about the Starlight Children’s Foundation Canada, their in-hospital and in-community events, how to donate or register to be a Starlight family, go to www.starlightcanada.org.
