Autumn 2010

Autumn 2010 News from the Sweet Pea Foundation!

Where does the time go? As we write this newsletter, we are celebrating Grace’s 8th birthday. Although much has happened over the years, the memories of the time spent caring for our “Sweet Pea” remain strong. So too, does our commitment to help sick children and their families.

As we reported in our last newsletter, we have been working with Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center in Mishawaka, IN on several projects. Over the summer we commissioned a muralist to paint a treatment room with a wildlife theme. With input from the medical staff, it was decided that the presence of lions, birds, chimpanzees, and zebras would provide a distraction to children receiving treatments. In addition to turning a somewhat institutional room into one that is much more inviting, the Foundation supplied, and will continue to supply the room with a basket of toys that can be given to the patients after receiving a treatment. Visit our the photo gallery or our Facebook page if you would like to view additional photographs of the room and the entry to the pediatric unit.

We also remain engaged with Memorial Children’s Hospital in South Bend. We are finalizing a program that will provide massage therapy to the family members of a child that has been admitted to the hospital. This program is part of our Seeds of Grace campaign that will allow us to provide the service on a continual basis for years to come.

We would like to thank everyone who supported this year’s Kickoff Classic golf outing. The event was a huge success with golfers and sponsors from across the country providing support. We are humbled by the commitment of those who participate in the outing.

We will reach our goal of providing 5,000 toys by the end of 2010. With the holiday season fast approaching, we will be able to play Santa to lots of children during their hospital stay.

Distraction by Design

In June, we commissioned local artist Anne Munger of Elkhart to paint a mural at the entrance of the Neonatal and Pediatric units and in a treatment room at Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center. After meeting with the pediatric staff at SJRMC, they suggested that a wildlife theme in the treatment room would help provide some distraction to patients during procedures. The addition of birds, lions, orangutans and zebra would help soften the institutional feel of the room. We also provided a basket of toys (Gifts of Grace) for the room. Each patient can pick a toy after receiving a treatment. The Foundation will make sure to supply the basket of toys for years to come.

7th Annual Kickoff Classic a Huge Success

The seventh annual Kickoff Classic was held at Juday Creek on September 10th. Congratulations to this year’s winners: (pictured left to right) Duke Mabry, Tom Borger, Ed Hardig and Scott Bucher. A special thanks to our major sponsors: Ernest Maier, Lawyers Title, McGladrey, Memorial Children’s Hospital, Regency Search Group, Wells Fargo Advisors and Wightman Petrie. Additional sponsors are listed on the back of this brochure. If you like to plan ahead, the 8th annual Kickoff Classic golf outing will be September 2, 2011 at Juday Creek Golf Course.

Lots O’ Toys

To date, the Sweet Pea Foundation has purchased and delivered over 4,558 toys to children’s hospitals. With a little extra shopping this year, we will achieve our goal of providing 5,000 toys by the end of 2010.

The Big Ticket

The Sweet Pea Foundation has been providing “Big Ticket” items to hospitals since our inception. We define these items as those that can be utilized by many patients during a hospital stay and usually have a heavier price tag. To date the Foundation has donated over 340 items that include DVD players and DVDs, Game Boys, crib mobiles, Play Station and Wii games, board games, highchairs, bouncy seats, crib aquariums, personal DVD players and many others. The Foundation recently purchased 16 Sony DVD players for the treatment room and all the patient rooms in the pediatric unit at Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center. These players will provide a much needed distraction for kids and their families while they are sick in the hospital.

Keeping up with Technology

Thanks to a directed gift by Tri Kappa Alpha Rho, Elkhart Chapter, the Foundation upgraded its computer this past June. This new system will allow us to house all our files in a single location. All our marketing, database, and financial files have been moved to the new computer. We sincerely appreciate their generosity and support of the Sweet Pea Foundation.

Holiday Gifts that Give

Looking for a unique holiday gift for a neighbor or coworker? Don’t know what to get the person on your list that has everything? Consider a gift to the Sweet Pea Foundation in their name this holiday season.

Just fill out the pledge card and indicate that the donation is a holiday gift. The Foundation will mail a card to the recipient acknowledging a gift has been made in their honor.

Blarney Bash

Mark your calendar for another fun-filled event this St. Patrick’s Day. The 8th annual Blarney Bash is going to be held on Wednesday, March 17th at the Knights of Columbus in Elkhart. Please join us for traditional Irish cuisine, green beer and Irish music. This is a family friendly event that is fun for all ages. If you are interested in sponsoring the event, contact Pete at 574-296-1310 or email blarneybash@comcast.net.

Benefits of Reading

The benefits of reading to children is well documented. With this knowledge, the Sweet Pea Foundation has been providing books to patients at hospitals caring for children. Reading helps with the healing process and provides stimulation that assists with cognitive development. We are excited about this new facet of our giving. To date we have already donated over 200 books and plan to provide many more in the coming years.

Did You Know…

100% of donations received go toward the goals of the Foundation. All expenses are covered by the Power and Letherman families.