Card Drive to Reach Hospitalized Kids across the U.S.

BETHANY, W.Va. – A Bethany College graduate student set out to make the holiday season a little brighter for young hospital patients.

Using markers, colored paper, stickers, and sheer creativity, students created about 60 cards that will be given to Cards for Hospitalized Kids for distribution in medical facilities across the country.

Cards carried the standard “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Holidays,” but they also sought to motivate with messages such as “Fight to the Finish” and “You Inspire Me.”

Kristen Ewing, the residence life coordinator at Bethany, set up a card-making station Wednesday, Dec. 4, in the Ogden Dining Hall for about two hours.

She said that researching ways to give back led her to Chicago-based Cards for Hospitalized Kids.

Since its creation, the nonprofit organization has delivered more than 100,000 cards to children in hospitals and Ronald McDonald Houses in all 50 states.

By sending the cards to Cards for Hospitalized Kids, Ewing said she expects them to then be sent to areas with the greatest need.

As for those who created cards, she said she hopes they will reflect on how fortunate they are.

“Around the holidays, you get stressed out and you forget that you have more than you think you do,” Ewing said.

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ABOUT BETHANY COLLEGE

Bethany College, founded in 1840, is the oldest private college in West Virginia. The Bethany experience focuses on academic excellence in the area of liberal arts and prepares students for a lifetime of work and a life of significance.