Kids Day goes virtual. How to get involved and what a donation does at Valley Children’s
UPDATE: The 34th annual Kids Day on March 9 raised $270,955 for Valley Children’s Hospital, organizers said March 12.
For 32 years, Kids Day was marked by volunteers swarming central San Joaquin Valley intersections hawking special-edition copies of The Fresno Bee in a fundraiser for Valley Children’s Hospital.
Donors responded, many going out of their way to deliver $1 or more — to the tune of $10.137 million.
Then came the coronavirus pandemic, canceling last year’s street sales and forcing a new era for Kids Day: You can support Valley Children’s Hospital by purchasing a special $1 Kids Day pass to The Bee online.
The 14-day pass includes unlimited digital access to fresnobee.com, the eEdition, mobile and tablet apps, and much more — and the purchase price benefits Valley Children’s. (Current subscribers can go to fresnobee.com/kidsday to donate directly to Valley Children’s.)
Valley Children’s Healthcare Network President and CEO Todd Suntrapak explains some of the ways that Kids Day donations help fund programs:
- Families can breathe a little easier by not having to worry about paying for the hospital’s social workers who work with the children.
- And, when there’s a language barrier, interpreters step in — at no cost to patients’ families, either.
- Patients who might need a little boost of hope and courage can count on the hospital’s free Spiritual Care resources. Chaplains are available to pray for children who might be facing a quick surgery or who may be in declining health.
- The hospital’s Child Life program, which uses specialists to provide education, play and emotional support for patients and families, has been possible to provide thanks to the contributions from Valley residents.
In 2020, it was a difficult year for the staff treating children with COVID-19.
“We’ve taken care of thousands of patients with COVID,” Suntrapak said. “We’ve taken care of almost 200 patients with multi-system inflammatory syndrome which is the result of a child being infected with COVID-19 virus ... that is life-threatening. Many of those patients have to be treated in our ICU. Most kids thankfully do not have severe symptoms from COVID-19.”
The promise of comfort and support at Valley Children’s, coupled with the busy foot traffic in and out each day, shows the impact of the hospital for Valley kids.
At the main campus alone during fiscal year 2020, Valley Children’s hospital saw 181,984 outpatient visits, 84,720 emergency room visits, 10,697 inpatient discharges, 60,380 primary care visits, 11,529 urgent care visits and 7,370 obstetrician-gynecologist visits. Valley Children’s patients came from 43 states.
Suntrapak said the hospital uses the Kids Day donations carefully and hopes donations can continue to provide support for children for years to come.
This 34th annual Kids Day is once again sponsored by The Bee and ABC30.
This story was originally published March 9, 2021 at 12:01 AM.
