The Cheer Guild of Riley Hospital for Children and IU Health University Hospital have been “helping to create smiles since 1924,” says Stacey Craig, board member and Fishers resident. Stacey and her husband, Darren, got involved with this organization in 2007 because they learned firsthand how a hospital experience can be made better and less stressful when Stacey was hospitalized while pregnant with their son. “I can only imagine how children feel when they are going through a hospital stay. When we heard about The Cheer Guild, we immediately knew that this was a place for us,” she says.
The Cheer Guild has helped many families all over the Indianapolis area including many Fishers children. One Fishers resident couldn’t say enough wonderful things about this organization. Cynthia Lyon and her son, Parker, were recipients after Parker had heart surgery.
Cynthia says, “The Cheer Guild is an amazing organization of kind and compassionate volunteers who go out of their way to make sure that each patient at Riley feels special and loved. After our six month old, Parker, had heart surgery last December, Santa and the other volunteers made their rounds through the Cardiovascular ICU with presents for each child. They not only brought a gift for our sweet little boy, but also for our other two children. It meant the world to my husband and me and helped to ease some of the sadness and anxiety our daughter and son had been feeling.”
The Cheer Guild’s biggest project is the Toy Room located at Riley Hospital. Volunteers ensure the donated new toys and handmade items are safe to give as gifts to the children who are patients at Riley. Over 14,000 items are given as gifts each month!
This year, The Cheer Guild has teamed up with American Girl® for a fun program that showcases historical and contemporary fashions for girls and their dolls. Proceeds from the event will benefit The Cheer Guild Toy Room at Riley. This event is Saturday, November 9 at 1 pm and 5:30 pm and Sunday, November 10 at 1 pm. It will be held at Primo South, 2615 E. National Ave. in Indianapolis. The cost is $25 per person or $40 per girl for the intermission runway experience. Tickets can be purchased by contacting Heather Dawes, Director of The Cheer Guild, at hdawes@iuhealth.org or by calling (317) 948-3584 or (317) 402-5636.
For more information on The Cheer Guild, visit www.cheerguild.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CheerGuild.
