Holy Name Press Releases

BD Volunteers and Public School Students Cheer Hospitalized Patients

July 8, 2011

July 8, 2011 (Teaneck, NJ) - Twenty volunteers recently delivered joy and encouragement in the form of hand-decorated quilts and pillows to patients in the pediatric and mother/baby units as well as the clinic of Holy Name Medical Center. Under the auspices of the non-profit organization Soaringwords, students from School 5 in Paterson and employee volunteers from the medical technology company BD teamed up to decorate SoaringQuilts® and SoaringPillows® with inspirational messages and artwork to donate to hospitalized patients.

The mission of Soaringwords (www.soaringwords.org) is to empower communities to support and inspire chronically ill children and encourage their families to "Never give up!"  Soaringwords embraces these children and families by providing fun, creative and educational activities both in person and online that cultivate joy, hope, laughter and healing.

"Our patients and families feel loved and supported to have received these beautiful quilts and pillows from school children and BD volunteers," said Sheryl Syby, Unit Director of Women's and Children's Services, Holy Name Medical Center. Throughout the year, adults and children volunteer to embrace ill children though innovative Soaringwords' Hospital Outreach, Educational Outreach and Youth Leaders programs.  To date, the charity has reached 250,000 children and their families.

Lisa Honig Buksbaum, Soaringwords CEO & Founder, notes that "When a child is ill, his or her entire family is in crisis. Soaringwords' unique focus on healing the child and his or her family and friends brings something totally new and needed." Buksbaum started the charity ten years ago after three experiences with death and illness in her family occurred in a 10-month period.



About Holy Name Medical Center:

Holy Name Medical Center is a fully accredited, not-for-profit healthcare facility based in Teaneck, New Jersey, with off-site locations throughout Bergen County.  Founded and sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace in 1925, the comprehensive 361-bed medical center offers leading-edge medical practice and technology administered in an environment rooted in a tradition of compassion and respect for every patient. Holy Name provides high quality health care across a continuum that encompasses education, prevention, early intervention, comprehensive treatment options, rehabilitation and wellness maintenancefrom pre-conception through end-of-life. Affiliation with the NewYork-Presbyterian Healthcare System brings an added dimension to care, in the form of increased access to clinical trials, highly specialized physicians, and expanded opportunities for professional medical education.


About BD:

BD is a leading global medical technology company that develops, manufactures and sells medical devices, instrument systems and reagents. The Company is dedicated to improving people's health throughout the world. BD is focused on improving drug delivery, enhancing the quality and speed of diagnosing infectious diseases and cancers, and advancing research, discovery and production of new drugs and vaccines. BD's capabilities are instrumental in combating many of the world's most pressing diseases. Founded in 1897 and headquartered in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, BD employs approximately 29,000 associates in more than 50 countries throughout the world. The Company serves healthcare institutions, life science researchers, clinical laboratories, the pharmaceutical industry and the general public. For more information, please visit www.bd.com.