Bulldogs Volunteer at Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital
NEW HAVEN, Conn. - With the fall season wrapping up, the Yale men's lacrosse team remains busy off the field.
Throughout the months of October and November, the team participates in community service at the Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital and the Arts for Healing program, which helps children express themselves through art, music, and video.
Children work with professional artists and musical therapists to discover how to remain positive, with staff and volunteers fostering a creative environment.
"Visiting Yale-New Haven was one of the most enriching experiences that I've had in a while," said junior defenseman Camyar Matini. "One of the biggest things that I took away from my visit was that despite everything that the kids were going through, they were still kids at the end of the day. The way they lit up when they realized that we would be doing arts and craft with them really highlighted how much just being a kid again for a short amount meant to them."
The Bulldogs volunteered in conjunction with the Vs. Cancer Foundation fundraiser, and this is their second year working with Arts for Healing. The team assists with activities such as making wall murals along with "What Floats Your Boat," which consists of building flotation devices out of medical supplies.
Yale-New Haven's Smilow Cancer Center is also set to receive over $21,000 from the lacrosse team's fundraising efforts.
"What Yale lacrosse has accomplished is awe-inspiring; not only for the Vs. Cancer Foundation but for the hundreds of children at Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital who will be on the receiving end of these funds and for the thousands of children nationwide who will have a better chance to beat cancer," said Chase Jones, founder of Vs. Cancer. "As a survivor, I could not be more thrilled nor gracious for Yale's belief in helping cure kids' cancer."
All donations to the Vs. Cancer Foundation go toward battling childhood cancer and Yale's fundraiser page can be found here.
Arts for Healing began at Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital in 2003 and information on how to contribute can be found here.
Filed by Nick Jallat, Yale Sports Publicity Intern
