Last week, Children’s Hospital at Erlanger collected over 250 Tiny Trees in just two days.
This was the second year Erlanger made this opportunity available to the public and even had to restrict donations to only five trees per organization or donor.
Still, the community came out in force to show their support and brighten the day for pediatric patients hospitalized during the holidays. The Tiny Trees, decorated in various themes, are placed in children’s hospital rooms and taken home during the holiday season.
Many of this year’s trees had festive themes, ranging from Frozen and Sesame Street to Elf on the Shelf, dinosaurs and construction. There were trees transformed into gnomes, snowmen and Santa. Toy Story and super heroes were also popular themes this year.
“We cannot thank our community enough for supporting our pediatric patients,” said Ashley Zani, Child Life specialist at Children’s Hospital at Erlanger. “It can be tough for these kids to be in the hospital around the holidays, so we always enjoy being able to bring these festive trees into their rooms and brighten up their day. I have a young patient who has been with us for several years and he always looks forward to receiving his newest Tiny Tree to add to his collection. ”
Officials with Children’s Hospital also want to thank the many community groups and organizations who donated Tiny Trees this year, including City Church Chattanooga, Hixson High School Key Club, Boyd Buchanan Seventh Grade, Raccoon Mountain Campground, Ringgold High School Beta Club, Chattanooga High School Center for Creative Arts National Honor Society, and The Children of the Chattanooga Branch of The Church of Jesus Christ and Latter-Day Saints.