Starlight Children's Foundation Launches Mobile Giving Campaign

Online, December 2, 2012 (Newswire.com) - Starlight Children's Foundation of Florida is making helping seriously ill children as simple as a text message. With their new mobile giving campaign, anyone can text the word "SMILES" to 80000 to donate $10 to the non-profit organization.

When a child or teenager has a serious medical condition, everyone in the family is affected. Ongoing donations will ensure that more families have access to Starlight's entertainment, education and family activity programs which distract children from their pain, help them better understand and manage their illnesses, and connect families facing similar challenges so that no one feels alone.

Each month, money donated via the mobile giving campaign will benefit different programs offered by Starlight Children's Foundation of Florida. For example, Starlight's Great Escapes family activities program was created to provide families with a chance to spend recreational time together to relax away from the hospital and make special memories together. Starlight Florida serves an estimated 6,500 children throughout Florida monthly.

Funds donated also benefit Fun Center mobile entertainment units, which contain a Sharp Aquos LCD television, DVD player, and Nintendo Wii™ gaming system. Whether hospitalized children are nervously awaiting surgery, sitting restlessly during a long treatment, or feeling lonely in their hospital room, Fun Centers help them cope by providing endless hours of fun and distraction.

All donation(s) will appear on/be charged through the donor's wireless bill.

Robert Peters, executive director of Starlight Children's Foundation of Florida, said, "There is an urgent need for Starlight's programs and services in Florida, and we introduced the mobile giving program to make it even more simple for members of our community to become a part of the Starlight donor community. Just $10, or multiple donations of $10, can make a big difference in the life of a seriously ill child in our area."

About Starlight Children's Foundation Florida
When a child or teenager has a serious medical condition, everyone in the family is affected. For nearly 30 years, Starlight Children's Foundation has been dedicated to helping seriously ill children and their families cope with their pain, fear and isolation through entertainment, education and family activities. Starlight's programs have been proven to distract children from their pain, help them better understand and manage their illnesses, and connect families facing similar challenges so that no one feels alone. Serving more than 6,800 children each month throughout the state of Florida, Starlight's array of outpatient, hospital-based and Web offerings provide ongoing support for children and families - before, during and after medical treatment. To learn more about Starlight Children's Foundation Florida, visit www.starlight.org/florida.

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