A Canadian Charity bringing some joy and comfort to marginalized children who are seriously ill/injured and/or disabled receiving life-saving medical treatment in the Edmonton area, by donating new/used iPads & tablets. WHAT WE DO:
The non-profit “iKare4Kids Society” has a mission to empower families, in financial need, with critically ill, injured and/or disabled children, by repurposing new/gently used technology. HOW IT STARTED:
The Founder of “iKare4Kids Society” is a current serving Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Police Officer, Deanna Hagen. In 2015 while she was volunteering for Ronald McDonald House, she was surprised to learn that many families, with a child in the hospital receiving lifesaving treatment, were facing technology poverty. This sparked the idea to collect new/used iPads and tablets from the community, keeping them out of the landfill, and donating them to support seriously ill/injured/disabled child. iKare4Kids humbly started with 1 person but has now grown to the current Board of Directors, consisting of 8 people that are all volunteers! Since that spark ignited in 2015, iKare4Kids has delivered many iPads and tablets, to seriously ill/injured/disabled children receiving treatment, most frequently at the Stollery Children’s Hospital. WHY WE DO IT:
The value and positive support that these electronic devices bring to the families and the children while on their medical journey are endless, such as, the following to just name a few:
• Storing medical information & treatment plans
• Allowing parents/guardians to research and submit applications for financial aid
• Access to research and support with their child’s diagnosis and ongoing medical needs
• Communication tool for the child and practice ongoing motor skills and rehabilitation
• Connecting family and friends afar with video capabilities
• Allow children to continue their education with online schooling
• Access to music, games, movies, online books to bring some comfort and joy to the lives of these seriously ill/injured children to alleviate some boredom and depression while in the hospital
• Provides distractions during medical procedures
• Ongoing communication with the team of medical professionals and arrange follow up medical appointments for years to come. HOW YOU CAN HELP:
If our program resonates with you, there are several ways to help support iKare4Kids which provides flexibility for each individual situation, which are as follows:
~RECYCLE your old iPad/tablet......the environment will also thank you! Gently used iPads and/or Tablets (chargers, cases, accessories), or
~Financial donations
~Fundraise on our behalf
~Volunteer with us
~Spread the word about iKare4Kids
