Fairmont Rotary Club to send 150 Jared Box to local hospitals

The project grew to a national level after the 2000 passing of 5-year-old Jared, who battled cancer. Fairmont Rotary Club project manager Tina Shaw said she’s happy the club has been able to participate in the project each year — and sometimes twice a year — since 2020.

"Rotary's motto is service above self, and we're always looking for new types of service projects that benefit the community. When we came across the Jared Box Project, it really hit home to a lot of us who have had children in the hospital. ...

"We fill these plastic boxes with all kinds of toys, games and activities that children can do while they're in the hospital, whether that's in the ER or inpatient or they're going to the hospital for treatment on a regular basis. The boxes help distract the child while they're there, and they're filled with fun things."

Fairmont Rotary Club member Laura Candell said that she, too, was happy to be able to work on the Jared Boxes, as well as all of the club's other service projects.

"We want to give back to the community," Candell said. "It really does take a village to get through life these days, so when you've got a sick young ne in the hospital, we may not know you personally, but we're here in the community rallied behind you, and we're here to help in any way we can. ...

"That's goes for more than just the Jared Boxes. We've got several service projects to help the community and bond us all together."

Shaw said this year's project is unique in that the Rotary Club was contacted by the nonprofit because Broaddus Hospital in Philippi reached out to get involved.

Now, the Rotary Club's Jared Boxes are going to the Fairmont Medical Center, Mon General Hospital and Broaddus Hospital, Shaw said.

Shaw said she knows all too well what it's like to have a child in the hospital, and through this service project, she hopes the Rotary Club can ease both the minds of the children and their parents.

"This is a project that's very near and dear to my heart," Shaw said. "I'm a mother of four, and we've spent a lot of time in the emergency room with four boys. I just know that these boxes are very much appreciated from both the parents' and the children's perspectives."

All of the Jared Boxes are packed and ready to go, and the Fairmont Rotary Club plans to have them delivered to the hospitals next week.