St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children

The Ahmad Butler Foundation has provided support to children and their families in the Department of Oncology at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children (SCHC) since ABF’s Inception. In early of April 2020, ABF made a large donation of food and household items to our clinic food pantry. ABF’s donation has enabled us to provide significant assistance to our patients and their families over the past four months.

ABF is now partnering with us in supporting our patients as they return to school this fall. The ABF Remote Learning Program will provide the technology our patients need to succeed this upcoming school year as they navigate challenges associated with Covid-19. We are committed to helping implement the ABF Remote Learning Program within our department and are hopeful it will greatly benefit the 70 patients we are currently treating.

Sincerely,

ROBIN CAPECCI, MSW, LSW
ONCOLOGY SOCIAL WORKER
ST. CHRISTOPHER’S HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN

ANN CHAPKIN MEEKINS, MSW, LSW
ONCOLOGY SOCIAL WORKER
ST. CHRISTOPHER’S HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN

Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Philadelphia Region

Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Philadelphia Region is a non-profit organization with a mission to support families of seriously ill children by creating a community of comfort and hope through a range of programming and services including two Ronald McDonald Houses, RMHC Philly provides support to families facing a wide range of pediatric diagnoses, but the most common departments served include neonatology, orthopedics, and oncology. It was the commonality of serving oncology families that brought about an introduction between RMHC Philly and The Ahmad Butler Foundation in 2019 and this relationship has benefited numerous families.

Families travelling to Philadelphia for world-class pediatric care face many challenges. They struggle with where to stay, affording the time away from home and work, coping with the stress and keeping their family together. These challenges are only exacerbated as the world faces a new global pandemic in the coronavirus. RMHC Philly has continued to provide temporary lodging close to the hospital, daily meals, and a host of supportive services to families even during these uncertain times. ABF has generously provided RMHC Philly with several in kind donations in recent months including individually packaged breakfast and snack items to help keep our kitchen pantry stocked and incentive gift cards for our staff which continues to work in support of each guest family’s needs.

Studies have shown that children heal more quickly, both physically and emotionally, when they are grounded in a sense of normalcy. As a part of the recent expansion of our House on Chestnut Street in West Philadelphia, we now have a classroom and are able to provide on-site tutoring for patients being treated on an outpatient basis and patient siblings staying at the House. These young students are able to maintain some normalcy in their days by attending lessons and will be better equipped to transition back to school when their time in Philadelphia is complete.

Classroom technology has never been more vital than it is today. With many school districts throughout the world moving to virtual formats or a combination of virutal and in-person learning, RMHC is proud to be partnering with ABF to ensure that students utilizing our classroom have the necessary technology to succeed in their lessons. We look forward to receiving donations of Chromebooks or similar tablets for our guests to utilize.

We understand all too well that childhood cancer and serious diagnoses do not stop as the world faces a new pandemic and awaits a vaccine. Because of this, the families we serve need our support now more than ever before. RMHC Philly is honored to partner with ABF to provide families with technology to aid in their children’s education as well as to easily connect with their loved ones back home.

Sincerely,

LAURA VAN TASSEL
ANNUAL GIVING MANAGER