McMaster Children's Hospital
Arts and Crafts Program
Since its foundation in 1988, McMaster Children's Hospital has served the unique healthcare needs of children using a family-oriented model of care. Its focus on evidence-based care, collaborative research, and innovative education has made the hospital one of the top pediatric health science centres in Canada. Each year, McMaster Children's Hospital serves over 210,000 patients from the greater Hamilton area and beyond.
For over a decade, Smiling Over Sickness has been collaborating with McMaster Children's Hospital to run our weekly arts and crafts program, which provides fun and interactive activities for patients and their families. Our passionate volunteers and their creative craft ideas bring great joy for patients who often feel isolated and scared during their hospital stay. Many parents have expressed that their children look forward to these sessions as the highlight of their week.
The arts and crafts volunteering program comprises of 4 regular volunteers and 2 group leaders with the following responsibilities.
Responsibilities of Group Leaders
On top of the responsibilities of regular volunteers, group leaders have the following additional roles:
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Submit craft ideas and materials list to Volunteer Coordinator before the second Thursday of the month previous (e.g. December craft ideas must be submitted in November).
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Coordinate your volunteers and lead each arts and crafts session.
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Help facilitate communication between other volunteers and the volunteer coordinator throughout the year.
Volunteers are expected to fulfil ALL of the above responsibilities & commitments. Failure to do so will jeopardize your position as a hospital volunteer.
Responsibilities of Regular Volunteers
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Attend online arts and craft sessions every other week with patients from McMaster Children’s hospital. Each session will be approximately 1.5 to 2 hours long.
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Pick up necessary craft supplies from a local store (e.g. dollar store) so you can demo the activity during the online session. All purchases for craft supplies will be reimbursed.
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Attend 2-hour volunteer meetings online every other week. During these meetings volunteers will:
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Plan crafts and activities
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Record tutorial videos of the activities for patients unable to attend
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Go over any questions or concerns regarding their volunteer roles
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Help plan 2 small fundraising events supporting McMaster Children’s Hospital
Julia Labricciosa (she/her)
Co-President
Hi! My name is Julia (she/her) and I am a fourth year Health Sciences student. I am so thrilled to be serving as SOS President alongside Anjali this year! It has all come full circle- SOS is the first club I joined as a new McMaster student and from the very beginning I really looked up to the leadership and commitment of our exec team. I'm excited to now be in a position to support other students in achieving our shared mission of making a difference in the lives of sick children. I’m looking forward to what this year has in store for us!
Anjali Sachdeva (she/her)
Co-President
Hi! My name is Anjali and I am a fourth-year Health Sciences student. I am so thrilled to serve as the SOS President alongside Julia! I first became involved with SOS on the Ronald McDonald subcommittee in the summer after my first year and enjoyed the experience so much I kept on volunteering before serving as the Vice-President last year! I am so proud to be a part of this community which dedicates their time to support pediatric patients and their families. I am looking forward to seeing what amazing initiatives all our SOS volunteers will be up to this year!
Sanya Vij
(she/her)
Vice President of Finance
Hey everyone! I’m Sanya and I’m in my fourth year of Honours Life Sciences. I started my SOS journey in second year as a member of Smiles Squad and then was one of the Dance Marathon Co-Coordinators last year! I’m so excited to be VP of Finance and help us run smoothly throughout the year, with whatever 2021 has in store for us. I’m so glad I get to work with such hardworking and amazing individuals and cannot wait to see what this year brings :)