Crystal Lake girl donates over $1,000 to hospital

Posted August 22, 2012 3:28 pm

Submitted by Advocate Lutheran General Childrens Hospital

Abby Enck, 10, on the patio at Lutheran General Childrens Hospital, with child life specialist Allie Carlson. Courtesy of Advocate Lutheran General Childrens H

Abby Enck of Crystal Lake is just 10 years old, but since 2010, she has raised more than $2,600 for Advocate Lutheran General Children’s Hospital where her little brother, Cam, 9, is a frequent patient. Her donations have provided the hospital with over 1,000 boxes of crayons, 22 DVDs and much more.

This year Abby donated a playhouse, outdoor toy box, playground balls, bubble machines and bubbles, hula hoops, sidewalk chalk, and other outdoor items for the children’s hospital patio. This summer she has raised $1,100 by selling decorated sand buckets filled with a beach ball, sidewalk chalk and a squirter fish. Each bucket sold for $8.

Abby brought her donation to the hospital on Wednesday, Aug. 15.

The patio is a special place for Abby as she always enjoyed going on the patio when she visited her brother in the hospital. However she missed her toys from home. This is where she got the idea for this year’s donation of outdoor toys and games.

Abby’s donations began in 2009, when she coloring in the waiting area at her brother’s neurologist’s office and noticed that all the crayons were broken. So she decided to use money she had earned selling lemonade to purchase 36 boxes of crayons.

In 2010, Abby began her first summerlong project. Instead of having a lemonade stand, Abby sold “lemonade kits” for $1. The kits consisted of a bottle of water and a single serve lemonade packet along with a card which explained the purpose of her project. This raised $551 which provided the hospital with 1,009 boxes of Crayola crayons, 140 boxes of Crayola markers and 125 boxes of Crayola colored pencils to the hospital’s Child Life Program.

Then in 2011, Abby heard that the hospital had stopped having movie nights because they did not have very many new release videos. So she decided to sell “popcorn kits” for $5 and raised $984. With the money she purchased 22 new release DVDs, popcorn, candy and a gift card.

Her donations have even inspired her friends to donate the money they earned at a lemonade stand last summer to buy over 100 of boxes of Play Doh for kids in the hospital.

For information, contact the Child Life Department at (847) 723-PLAY. To make a donation, call (847) 723-7747.

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On Aug. 15, Abby Enck unloads her donation of outdoor play equipment for Lutheran General Childrens Hospital. Courtesy of Advocate Lutheran General Childrens H

Abby Enck of Crystal Lake pushes a wheelchair full of outdoor childrens play equipment for the patio at Lutheran General Childrens Hospital. Courtesy of Advocate Lutheran General Childrens H

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