Teen Advisory Council’s first project a success: four truckloads of snacks collected

The Teen Advisory Council at USA Health Children’s & Women’s Hospital’s recently completed a snack drive for pediatric patients age 13 and older. The drive marks the first project the council tackled since it started in 2020. Two of the council members held separate drives in their respective communities, collecting more than four truckloads of treats.

Council members Bennett Brown and Christian Hardy were instrumental in the execution of this project. Brown, a freshman at St. Paul’s Episcopal School, worked with the school’s community service department to collect donations for the drive. He also received a grant from the school to purchase additional items for hospitalized patients.

“The advisory council seemed like a great opportunity to not only help the hospital, but also as a great experience to work with other great teens in the area and the amazing faculty at USA Health,” Brown said. “I jumped at the opportunity to help out in any way I could. Giving back to an organization that does so much for our community seemed like a great opportunity for me to give back!”

The individually-packed treats include everything from granola bars and CHEEZ ITs to sports drinks and trail mix.

Since the council’s inaugural year coincided with the pandemic, all of the meetings have been held through Zoom. Though they have not been able to meet in person, Brown said meetings and interactions have gone well despite the unusual circumstances. Safety precautions prevented members from gathering to hold the snack drive as a group, but Bennett noted that each members’ motivation and help from school faculty made the amount of donations surpass expectations.

“We have been able to accomplish more than I thought we would,” Brown said. “This experience has not only been a chance to help the community, specifically teens like me, but an opportunity for me to work with others and learn what it is like to be on a council for an important organization,” Brown said. “It has opened my eyes to the obstacles faced when trying to accomplish a goal and also to how satisfying it is to achieve that goal as a team after all of our hard work.”

The Teen Advisory Council is made up of former patients or siblings of former patients at Children’s & Women’s Hospital. Their focus is to give teenagers affiliated with the hospital a medium to recommend ways to enhance the stay of other young patients while gaining experience with leadership and public speaking. Additional information about the council and membership applications are available on the USA Health website.