BETHLEHEM, Pa. — A pair of Lehigh Valley legends teamed up Monday with an industrious mother-and-daughter team to brighten the lives of young cancer patients throughout the area.
On Monday, representatives from the Lehigh Valley IronPigs and Just Born came together with Emily’s Hug Mee Drive to offer soft and squishy friends to children undergoing cancer treatment.
The group aims to provide 9,000 Peeps plushies to patients in children’s hospitals and youth-based nonprofits just before Easter.
As Emily’s mom Adele FaRannte explained it, the idea to provide a support Peep for kids going through a tough time came from personal experience.
Rosie the Squishmallow
Emily was diagnosed with cancer at age 11 in May 2022, Adele FaRannte said — a frightening event for a person of any age, let alone a child.
But Emily was able to traverse that fear thanks to a 14-inch Hug Mee Squishmallow named Rosie, which followed her from Children's Hospital of Philadelphia to Lehigh Valley Reilly Children’s Hospital.
“Her Squishmallow was able to go in all the big, scary machines that she went in, from MRIs to PET scans to CT scans," FaRannte said.
"It's also something that kids can hold to poke, and I did also learn after the fact that it's also helpful for parents when their kids are in the scans. Parents can use them to comfort themselves, as well.”
Emily was inspired by the strength Rosie offered, and wanted other kids in her position to have the same support for others in need.
That led to the birth of Emily’s Hug Mee Drive, which collects funds to buy plushies for other pediatric patients.
Pigs 'n' Peeps
As it turns out, being in the Lehigh Valley, Emily and her mom found a pair of super-sweet partners to help with their mission.
“We were working with them on a very sweet partnership, and the 'Pigs had all these wonderful plushies from the event,” Just Born Corporate Affairs Manager Meg Dowd said.
“And Just Born is so committed to the community and giving back, we both were looking for ways to partner and make sure that sweetness could be put back into the community and not go to waste.
"And what better way to spread sweetness to people’s lives than to give plushies to the kids who are most in need of it at this time of year, right before Easter? It’s a good fit.”
Dowd said pediatric cancer patients are near and dear to her heart, as she volunteers at Ronald McDonald House and CHOP.
“So this is a really easy way for me to have my heart filled, and just be part of something, not only for a week in the summer, but throughout the entire year."Meg Dowd, Just Born Corporate Affairs Manager
“So this is a really easy way for me to have my heart filled, and just be part of something, not only for a week in the summer, but throughout the entire year,” Dowd said.
Director of IronPigs Charities Anne Culhane said the team got about 9,000 Peeps plushies, in the classic bird shape, which will be distributed to hospitals and nonprofits throughout the area.
“Today, we're at St Luke's, and we're handing out probably almost 100 plushies right before Easter,” Culhane said.
“Sometimes, our lives are just going through the motions, especially with baseball season starting.
"So being able to come back to Earth and just vie that interaction, and see the smiles, it just kind of reminds us why we do what we do, and it helps put us in the right mood to continue.”
St. Luke’s Child Life Services Coordinator Gretchen Duffy said events such as the Peeps plushies distribution is “hugely important” to young patients.
“If they're here, that means that they are not at school or at home, engaging in all of sort of the normal activities of childhood," Duffy said.
"So to have something that's fun and exciting and seasonal and special to come in while they're in the hospital, it really goes a long way to brighten their day."
Duffy said such moments could not happen without the support of organizations like the IronPigs and Just Born embracing the community they call home.
'Lifted her spirits'
When Dylan Houck, 4, got his Peep on Monday afternoon, his face immediately lit up with a smile.
“It’s very nice to see, and to just have him feel he’s a part of things, having some happiness be brought in, it’s exciting,” Dylan’s mother, Kimberly Houck, said.
Karol and Dom Holmes said their daughter Milahni Holmes, 6, loved her Peep, as well.
"... If you haven't really seen it firsthand, when you see a kid battle cancer like they're true warriors. They deserve it — they deserve the world.”Dom Holmes
“I think it’s great, and we appreciate it," Dom Holmes said. "It definitely lifted her spirits. It’s pretty cool, especially when for the pediatric level, where the kids are kind of new to surgeries and stuff.
“It’s cool, especially with the IronPigs doing this kind of thing. It’s a great way for a professional sports team to kind of give back to the community.”
FaRannte said a simple plush toy might not seem like much, but it can mean the world to a child going through an especially trying time.
“I watched my daughter battle cancer," she said. "I watched her make friends with lots of other kids battling cancer, and if you haven't really seen it firsthand, when you see a kid battle cancer like they're true warriors.
"They deserve it — they deserve the world.”
