Nationwide Children’s Hospital Launches ‘Light Up the Lawn, Light Up a Life’ to Brighten Lives of Patients in the Hospital for the Holidays

COLUMBUS, Ohio (November 16, 2022) - Nationwide Children's Hospital is launching "Light Up the Lawn, Light Up a Life" - a new holiday tradition that builds hope and joy for hospitalized children, families and the health care heroes caring for them.

Launching Nov. 16 and continuing through the holiday season, the lawn along Livingston Avenue in front of Nationwide Children's will be transformed with an impressive butterfly-themed light display. Dozens of multi-colored butterflies will cover the lawn, illuminating each time a donation of $10 or more is made. The "Light Up the Lawn, Light Up a Life" display will be visible to pediatric patients and their families in the hospital tower as they look out at the lawn below, creating a joyful, impactful experience during the holiday season. With their donations, the community will produce a unique light show each night for the children and staff of Nationwide Children's Hospital.

Tim Robinson, CEO of Nationwide Children's, invites the community to participate in the campaign and impact the lives of patients who can't be home for the holidays.

"We hope the 'Light Up the Lawn, Light Up a Life' campaign becomes a new central Ohio tradition for families everywhere," said Robinson. "Every donation matters and supports everything from art therapy and family support services to life-saving research and clinical care. We want to make sharing the holiday spirit as easy as possible and give our community the opportunity to spread joy to those who cannot be home for the holidays."

Through the end of the year, anyone who gives a gift of $10 or more will instantly light up butterflies on the lawn and throughout inpatient units. Donors can make their gift from anywhere using their cellphone or laptop and watch the lawn light via a live-stream video feed. Other levels of giving will fund specific opportunities - in addition to lighting the lawn - to surprise patients and staff.

• With a $100 gift, a blue butterfly pillow and cheer card will be delivered to a patient.
• With a $500 gift, five blue butterfly pillows and cheer cards will be delivered to five patients.
• A $1,000 gift will sponsor an 18" (tabletop) blue butterfly, and a staff workstation will receive a holiday sweet treat basket.

The six and 10-foot butterflies displayed on the lawn are also available for sponsorship and include a variety of benefits for individuals or corporate benefactors. NRG and Bread Financial are serving as lead Holiday Light sponsors. Their gifts along with another anonymous donor will be featured as matching gift sponsors for community giving throughout the season.

In addition to the lawn display, butterflies will be at five community locations during the "Light Up the Lawn, Light Up a Life" campaign and will also illuminate when a donation is made. Easton Town Center, John Glenn Columbus International Airport, Bridge Park in Dublin, Columbus Commons downtown, and the Short North Arts District will also each have a butterfly on display that will illuminate when donations are made.

Several one-day butterfly appearances will occur throughout central Ohio at holiday staples like community tree lightings and favorite central Ohio seasonal events including Conservatory Aglow at Franklin Park Conservatory, Santa at the Lazarus Galleria and more. These community butterflies will be interconnected with the ones at Nationwide Children's and a donation will trigger them to all be lit at the same time.

"Nationwide Children's has spent 130 years working to ensure every family has access to the finest care regardless of their ability to pay," said Steve Testa, President of Nationwide Children's Hospital Foundation. "This care is consistently ranked among the nation's best and is found right here in central Ohio's backyard. Every gift matters, because every child matters."

The butterflies were manufactured locally and partners worked together to ensure all butterflies will shine brightly whenever a donation occurs through this new interactive initiative.

"Light Up the Lawn, Light Up a Life" will open for donations at 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 16 with a lawn lighting ceremony at Nationwide Children's Hospital and will run through Dec. 31. Community members can donate by scanning the QR code or by visiting nationwidechildrens.org/give. Additionally, a complete schedule of the 6' butterfly sculpture appearances is available by visiting nationwidechildrens.org/giving.

"We're grateful for the sponsors, community partners and campaign donors who make this holiday magic possible," said Testa. "We can't wait to see the community's generosity shine across Columbus, and make sure all of our patients, families and staff feel seen and celebrated."

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About Nationwide Children's Hospital
Named to the Top 10 Honor Roll on U.S. News & World Report's 2021-22 list of "Best Children's Hospitals," Nationwide Children's Hospital is one of America's largest not-for-profit free-standing pediatric health care systems providing unique expertise in pediatric population health, behavioral health, genomics and health equity as the next frontiers in pediatric medicine, leading to best outcomes for the health of the whole child. Integrated clinical and research programs, as well as prioritizing quality and safety, are part of what allows Nationwide Children's to advance its unique model of care. Nationwide Children's has a staff of more than 13,000 that provides state-of-the-art wellness, preventive and rehabilitative care and diagnostic treatment during more than 1.6 million patient visits annually. As home to the Department of Pediatrics of The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Nationwide Children's physicians train the next generation of pediatricians and pediatric specialists. The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital is one of the Top 10 National Institutes of Health-funded free-standing pediatric research facilities. More information is available at NationwideChildrens.org.

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