Halloween Doors & More – Community PedsCare
Give us an update on your winning program…Is it still in existence? How has it changed or grown since you were first recognized?
Since 2008, Community PedsCare has seen a 38% growth in patients enrolled in the program. This year, more than 125 children with life-threatening conditions and their families are enrolled for ongoing care. Additionally, nearly 300 families are served through hospital-based palliative care consults and through an outpatient palliative and pain management clinic.
Philanthropic support provides the majority of the $1.5 million annual costs of this program.
“The majority of services provided by Community PedsCare are not reimbursed expenses,” said DeAnn Collins, Executive Director and VP of Philanthropy for the Community Hospice Foundation. “Therefore, the funds raised by the Halloween Doors & More event are vital to the operation of the Community PedsCare program. To date, the annual event has provided more than $2.8 million in net proceeds. It is a tribute to the care and quality of the Community PedsCare organization, that even in a struggling economy, this gala continues to attract the attendance and support of the Jacksonville community.”
The eighth annual Halloween Doors & More event, including the first annual Monster Mash Dash 5K run, raised more than $350,000 in net proceeds for Community PedsCare. Integral to the success of the 2012 event was the creativity of its dedicated and hard-working 130-member committee and the more than 350 event volunteers. The committee worked hard providing new explorations for all the trick-or-treaters in your family by introducing the doors to Alice’s Adventure and Harry’s Wizarding World. The Monster Mash Dash 5K kicked off ‘a weekend of a different sort’ with a fun-filled night of adventure and excitement for the entire family—an evening 1-mile fun run followed by the 5K race. Runners came dressed to impress, running in costume to win prizes.
While there are many factors that have contributed to the growth of the Community PedsCare program, the Halloween Doors & More event has been the impetus for awareness and financial support that has been transformational. We have been able to add additional staff, including additional physician support and a child life specialist. With our program partner institutions, we have expanded services to include hospital-based palliative consults, an outpatient palliative and pain management clinic, integrative medicine therapies, and a program to support children and families in life transitions. We have expanded our care to reach a growing number of children. A fund has been established specifically to provide respite care for families, established by a family who came to us through a connection to Halloween Doors & More. We have established an endowment specifically for Community PedsCare, which is currently funded at nearly $3 million. Through the support of one of our donors, we have established a professorship in pediatric palliative medicine at the University of Florida.
Many volunteers who initially became involved through Halloween Doors & More helped us established an ambassador group called Hearts of Care and a Community PedsCare Community Advisory Board. The adult advisory board led to the addition of a Community PedsCare Teen Advisory Board that includes teens from various high schools around our area. These teens raise funds and awareness in their schools throughout the year and do all of the planning and fundraising to host a family fun day for our Community PedsCare families. Halloween Doors & More has lead to other events including These Kids Can Play hosted by the PGA TOUR Wives Association at THE PLAYERS championship to host families for a day at THE PLAYERS and raise funds for the program, involvement with the Furyk & Friends golf tournament and concert, and an annual celebrity waiter luncheon to benefit the respite care fund. Several leadership volunteers have also become members of our Community Hospice and Community Hospice Foundation Board.
How has your program affected patient and/or community outcomes?
Halloween Doors & More continues to be a favorite event for many families throughout our community and for our Community PedsCare families who attend at no charge through the generosity of our sponsors. Each year, we hear from Community PedsCare families that they are so grateful to be able enjoy a special family event–for some, a rare opportunity for an outing with the whole family. And we also hear from volunteers and guests how much it means to them to enjoy the event with their family and to share the fun with our Community PedsCare families.
How can people find out more about your winning program?
To find out more about Community PedsCare and Halloween Doors & More, visit CommunityHospice.com.
Community PedsCare patient Brian is such a cute little devil, getting his face painted at the eighth annual Halloween Doors & More event. Community Hospice of Northeast Florida hosted ‘a weekend of a different sort’ where more than 1,900 attended the October event and Monster Mash Dash 5K run. The 2012 weekend celebrations raised more than $330,000 for Community PedsCare, the pediatric palliative and hospice program for children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions.