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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Group offers fun for families of sick kids

When children get sick and visit the hospital, it’s stressful on both the child and the parents.

Families of sick children tend to isolate themselves from friends and dedicate every spare moment to caring for the child.

For the past two years, the Starlight Starbright Children’s Foundation has been working to make sure sick children have a fun place to play at the hospital and to make sure there are activities for their families to do together and to get them out of the hospital.

The organization teamed with Toys R Us to design a room in the Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital with toys, a television with videos to watch, crafts, games and more. The room opened in 2006.

Susan Faltermeyer, development officer for the organization, said the room is procedure-free, meaning that it is just meant to be for fun times during a child’s stay at the hospital.

A couple of weeks ago, she said, a grandmother and her granddaughter were in the room playing with some toys. They told Faltermeyer the family had all gathered in the room the night before and had a wonderful time.

“This is a good-time site,” Faltermeyer said.

Starlight also helps to provide Fun Centers and PC Pals. Fun Centers are carts that can be wheeled to patients that include a TV, VCR or DVD player and a Nintendo game unit. PC Pals are laptop computers loaded with educational software and Internet access.

There are Fun Centers at Sacred Heart, Shriners Hospital and Deer Park Hospital.

The foundation is also spreading the word about its Great Escapes program, which gets kids and families out of the hospital to have a little fun.The program has taken families to basketball games, ice shows and symphony performances and will take a group to Mobius Kids on Saturday.

Last year, Starlight organized 18 events through Great Escapes for 431 children and family members. This year’s goal is 30 events.

“It gives those families a chance to socialize again,” Faltermeyer said.

More than 6,000 youth 19 years old and younger are served by the foundation in Washington every month. Many of the children have chronic, terminal or permanently disabling illnesses.

The Spokane branch has recently formed a board of directors and a leadership council to help gain support of area businesses. The organization is also looking for volunteers to help set up for parties in the hospital, communicate with the families, send out mailers and help organize databases.