Santa spreads cheer to Jimmy Fund Clinic patients - Cancer Patient Stories

Many things were different about 2020, but even a pandemic couldn’t keep holiday cheer away from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s Jimmy Fund Clinic.

With in-person gatherings not possible due to COVID-19 safety precautions, Jimmy Fund Clinic “elves” brought the fun to patients virtually—through Zoom Santa visits in clinic and in the comfort of their own homes.

In lieu of the Winter Wonderland clinic staff normally host outside of the hospital each year—which includes visits from Santa, Disney princesses, and others, with food, drinks, and fun for the whole family—Lisa Scherber, director of patient and family programs at the Jimmy Fund Clinic, rallied her staff to get festive in other ways. They set up an Amazon Wish List for supporters to purchase presents for kids undergoing treatment, and spread joy by decorating the clinic into its own Winter Wonderland throughout the month of December. Patients like Grady, 10, pictured below, enjoyed video chats with a special guest from the North Pole.

*_{Jimmy Fund Clinic patient, Ellie, 6.}*

Santa also visited kids at their homes, where siblings joined the fun to hear stories and jokes from Santa and share their holiday wish lists.

*_{Austin, 4, (left) and his brother, Cameron, chat with Santa.}*

*_{Aileen, 6, joins fellow patients for a virtual visit from Santa.}*

In a year when siblings could not join patients in the Clinic, these moments helped bring joy to the whole family.

Elijah, who turns 1 on December 26, (center), and his siblings, Miles and Kayla, enjoyed a festive night at home. — _{Elijah, who turns 1 on December 26, (center) and his siblings, Miles and Kayla, enjoyed a festive night at home.}

*_{Maddie, 7, (right) played festive games with her family after Santa’s visit.}*

Thanks to support from donors like you, special patient programs like these are possible. Thank you for bringing joy to our patients year-round! You can make a gift in support of our pediatric and adult patient programs, treatment, and cancer research this holiday season that will make a difference in the lives of these families and many others.