Niagara Wheatfield High School senior Kennedy Heaton led her classmates in a drive to collect more than 100 stuffed animals for children at Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center’s Child Advocacy Center.
Children referred to the Center for suspected abuse and exposure to trauma are given the animals as comfort items to reduce their stress. The children then take their animals home as a reminder that there are many people who care about them and their safety. The stuffed animals are also included in care packs – backpacks provided to youths who are homeless or at risk for trafficking.
“We see children from infancy to young adulthood at the Child Advocacy Center,” said Director Ann Marie Tucker. “We find that boys and girls of all ages find the stuffed animals to be a significant source of comfort.”
Last year, the center served nearly 300 children who thought to have been abused, trafficked or witnesses of violence.
Kennedy found out about the Child Advocacy Center’s need for the comfort animals through the Zonta Club of Niagara Falls, New York which awarded her their scholarship for a Young Woman in Public Affairs. When she heard that the center needed new stuffed animals she contacted school Counselor Mary Graber and Principal Timothy P. Carter. With their approval she went to work reaching out to her fellow students with announcements and fliers.
The results of the drive exceeded everyone’s expectations.
“This donation is especially meaningful because Kennedy and her classmates cared enough to help brighten a child’s day,” Tucker said.
Kennedy will be attending the University of Calgary in the fall and plans to be a pediatrician.
