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St. Luke's Hospital Pediatric Patients Receive Fun Center TMFrom Starlight Children's Foundation TM , Qdoba Mexican Grill® And Qmmunity TM Winner Emily DuboisCHESTERFIELD, MO, April 9, 2010 - Children undergoing treatment at St. Luke's Hospital are smiling brighter and laughing a little more, thanks to a Fun Center TM mobile entertainment unit sponsored through a partnership of Starlight Children's Foundation TM , Qdoba Mexican Grill® and Qdoba's first-ever Qmmunity TM program winner, Emily DuBois. Designed to combat the anxiety and weariness faced by hospitalized children, the Fun Center includes a Nintendo Wii TM gaming system, a Sharp® AQUOS TM LCD TV and a DVD player. The Fun Center was unveiled to patients and hospital staff last Friday, April 2. The Fun Center donation was part of Qdoba and Starlight's inaugural Qmmunity program, an online campaign to promote community heroes. As the winner of Qmmunity, Qdoba awarded Emily with $5,000 donated to her charity of choice, Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America. It also awarded her with a Fun Center to be donated on her behalf to St. Luke's Hospital, where she spent two months recovering from surgery related to ulcerative colitis. "Emily is an inspiration to all of us, and we know the Fun Center will enrich the lives of our young patients and their families while at St. Luke's," said Diane Ray, RN, BSN, St. Luke's Hospital director of nursing. "We are grateful to Emily, Qdoba and Starlight for this generous gift." "After spending time in doctors' offices and hospitals myself battling ulcerative colitis for the past two years, I understand the importance of being able to provide patients with entertainment to help ease their pain and fears during a long stay," said Emily DuBois, Qmmunity winner and former St. Luke's patient. "I'm pleased to have been a part of the Qmmunity program and afforded the opportunity to help make a difference in the lives of the patients at St. Luke's, as the employees there have made such a great impact on mine." The ease with which Fun Centers roll right up to the side of young patients' beds or anywhere in a hospital makes them perfect for hospitalized children in numerous situations such as anticipating surgery or fighting loneliness after visiting hours have ended. For more information, visit www.starlight.org/funcenter. As part of Qdoba Mexican Grill's first national campaign with Starlight, the restaurant also committed to donating $1 for every online interaction with the Qmmunity Web site, up to $25,000. Qdoba selected Starlight as its national charity partner in 2008 and raised more than $115,000 in monetary contributions and in-kind donations of food and volunteer time in 2009. Qdoba has committed to raising $50,000 again for Starlight in 2010. In addition to its national commitment, Qdoba has hosted several local fundraising events to sponsor Fun Centers for hospitals in need. To date, units have been dedicated in Denver, Boston, Frisco, Colo., St. Louis, Atlanta and Seattle. BACK |