Hope in the Hospital: RE/MAX Brokers Organize Virtual Toy Drive for Patients

Even at 10 years old, Ashton Zari knows there’s something special about his Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) Hospital.  

“One thing I love about the hospital is that it’s more ‘homey’ than if you were going to get a checkup at a regular hospital,” Zari says. “If you’re scared, the medical team cheers you on and helps you have fun to calm down.”

Ever since he was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease at age 3, Zari has received regular treatment at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. Prior to the pandemic, his whole family was able to be by his side. His younger sister Addison would often play in the hospital’s “sibling clubhouse” while her brother had an appointment.

But with new rules in place to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, visiting the hospital is currently a very different experience for Zari and his family.

“I used to be able to take my siblings in with me, but now they can’t go into the hospital,” he says. “And there’s no more reassuring – you can’t give anybody hugs or anything in terms of social distancing. It’s kind of hard to feel better, but I still find ways.”

While new social distancing rules have been put in place to keep patients and staff safe, they’re also creating challenges for children’s hospitals across the country. According to Tim Harrison, Vice President of Corporate Partnerships at Phoenix Children’s Hospital (PCH), all in-person programming has been cancelled for patients at his hospital and visitors are restricted to the same two parents, guardians or caregivers.

“There’s a huge problem right now around isolation of kids who aren’t able to be around their own network of family and friends,” says Harrison. “Before, kids may have been able to move around the halls freely or come down to our Child Life Zone entertainment area. Now that we have to isolate kids to their own rooms, they’re unable to do that.”

As a result, the dedicated staff of PCH is getting creative. Cameras have been installed in patients’ rooms for virtual visits with family members who can’t be at the hospital. The hospital is also making greater use of a program called Child Life TV, an interactive channel featuring virtual bingo, crafts and more that kids can tune into throughout the day.

“Child Life TV is such a great program. It’s a group of staff that are helping to keep kids engaged with more virtual events that are happening,” Harrison said.

Coming together for the kids

Yet these programs are contributing to expenses at a time when children’s hospitals have lost, on average, $67 million each month during the pandemic, according to the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals website. RE/MAX has been a charitable partner for the organization, which raises funds and awareness for children’s hospitals across North America, since 1992.

When Christy Walker found out about the deficit in fundraising, the Designated Broker of RE/MAX Signature, also in Phoenix, knew she had to help.

“My office has always supported CMN Hospitals, but with COVID-19 many traditional fundraising efforts were put on hold this year,” Walker says. She called the CMN Hospitals liaison for PCH to brainstorm ideas for a project. When Walker learned that the hospital is currently unable to accept in-person gift donations due to the pandemic, the idea of a virtual toy drive was born.

“I wanted to show the kids that the outside world cares about what they are going through,” Walker says. “For a child in a hospital who is alone most of the day, these toys may provide a very welcome distraction to help the hours pass by a little better.”

Walker adds that many families may be facing high medical bills and struggling to afford holiday gifts. “We want to help relieve the burden since they are dealing with so much already,” she says.

Working with PCH, Walker launched www.aztoydrive.com to collect donations for the project. Setting an ambitious fundraising goal of $100,000 to ensure every patient at PCH is able to receive a gift, Walker enlisted her fellow brokers in the effort.

“I knew it was going to take more than my office to pull this off,” she says. Every RE/MAX office in Arizona is now helping to promote the fundraiser, even coming together to create a $10,000 matching fund.

The project caught the attention of CMN Hospitals’ national headquarters. The organization is now working with RE/MAX Broker/Owners in almost 30 markets across the U.S. to replicate the virtual toy drive for their local children’s hospital.

Change kids’ health, change the future

RE/MAX Alliance, based in Denver, is one of the brokerages hosting an additional virtual toy drive. Kim Hawkins, the brokerage’s vice president, says she wanted to do something to make up for the $100,000 donation to Children’s Hospital Colorado that was lost due to the cancellation of the brokerage’s annual golf tournament fundraiser.

“That’s a chunk of change for the hospital to miss out on this year, so we wanted to join in the effort to help,” Hawkins says. The brokerage is also offering a match, up to $15,000, to encourage donations.

“It was easy to get agents on board,” Hawkins says. “We all want to help bring these kids some happiness and joy for the holidays.”

Hawkins says she continues to be inspired not only by the strength of the current patients at her hospital but by who the kids become years later.

“The fabulous thing about those children is that they grow up to be amazing adults,” she says. Hawkins has met young patients of Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals who have grown up to compete in the Paralympics or founded their own nonprofits for other kids going through treatment. “Even if the child we help grows up and is just a really good human being, that pays it forward. All of these kids are our future.”

Sparking joy that lasts all year through

According to Harrison, the impact of donations made during the holidays through the Arizona toy drive will have a lasting impact on the patients of PCH.

“The RE/MAX drive will play a big role in helping stock the toy closet,” he says. “We want the kids to have a great holiday, but it goes beyond that. Kids have birthdays and other milestones throughout the year. The drive can help us stock additional gifts to use for special things that happen.”

When asked why now more than ever it’s important for community members to support CMN Hospitals, Harrison points to the organization’s slogan: Kids can’t wait.

“There are still kids getting sick, and they are our future. We have to protect our most vulnerable population,” he says. “Nobody wants to have to use a children’s hospital, but if they need us, it’s important we’re able to help families in their own backyard. And we can’t do it without the help of organizations like RE/MAX and the help of our local community.”

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