Children's hospital launches "Moonbeams for Sweet Dreams" to brighten spirits on Christmas
No matter how kind the nurses and doctors, a hospital can be scary -- and a lonely place for a child to spend the holidays.
"We literally brought Christmas here yesterday," said Margie O'Connor, whose daughter Theresa is finishing a round of chemotherapy for leukemia She'll be at Beaumont Children's Hospital in suburban Detroit for another month.
"I miss going to school, the social part of it," Theresa said. "Just like seeing outside."
Nighttimes are the hardest for the 17-year-old. "Nighttime, I feel like there's not as many people and it just gets me feeling sad, I guess," she said.
To brighten spirits this holiday season, the hospital launched "Moonbeams for Sweet Dreams." Armed with flashlights and friendly smiles, hundreds have turned up to send a message of comfort in the form of light beams.
"It gives a connection to anybody outside of the hospital and also gives them with a sense of hope because they know that random people that they don't even know are coming and shining the lights for them," Theresa said.
Message received -- and returned.
"It's just an acknowledgment, I think, for the kids, a way to bounce the light off of one another," Margie said.
