Altoona Volunteers Triple Easter Donations for Sick Kids

When volunteers gathered at the Altoona Rescue Mission thrift store last Wednesday, they had one mission: bring smiles to children spending Easter in hospital beds.

The team assembled more than 30 neon backpacks filled with puzzles, coloring books, stuffed animals, and volleyballs for Easter for Eli, a nonprofit organization that honors the memory of 3-year-old Elias "Eli" Garrett. The little boy lost his battle with non-Hodgkin T-cell lymphoma in 2009, just 10 days before his fourth birthday.

Since 2014, Easter for Eli has distributed over 87,000 donated baskets to hospitalized children and kids in need. Each package arrives as a surprise gift, transforming a difficult holiday into something special.

Volunteer Jenny Heidler has been organizing the donation drive for three years. When she first heard about the program in 2023, her team assembled about 10 baskets. This year, they tripled that number thanks to generous donations from thrift store shoppers and community members.

"It's something that we want to do, to help kids," Heidler said. She pointed out that the need keeps growing each year.

The organization recently switched from traditional plastic baskets to branded backpacks. The sturdy bags survive transportation better and give kids something useful they can keep long after Easter passes. Volunteers sort them by age group and gender using simple paper labels.

Fellow volunteer Connie Rickabaugh carefully packed toys into each bag, thinking about the children who would receive them. "If you had a little child in the hospital, and somebody walked in with an Easter basket, how would you feel?" Heidler asked.

Sunny's Take

There's something beautiful about volunteers choosing to spend their afternoon thinking about children they'll never meet. These volunteers understand that a backpack stuffed with toys means more than entertainment. It tells a scared child in a hospital bed that strangers care enough to make their day brighter. It reminds worried parents that their community surrounds them with support during their hardest moments.

The bags bring more than toys. They deliver a simple but powerful message: you're not alone, and you matter.

Easter for Eli accepts monetary donations through Venmo and welcomes Amazon, Sheetz, and Visa gift cards. The organization must receive all donations by March 13, just in time to distribute them before Easter Sunday.