The Alicia Rose Victorious Foundation (ARVF), in partnership with A.C. Moore Arts & Crafts, presented a mobile Art Cart to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). The Arts & Crafts Cart is stocked with age-appropriate products from A.C. Moore’s brand new flagship store in Center City, and designed to give chronically ill teens receiving medical treatment an opportunity for creativity and expression during their hospital stays.
The Art Cart will be located in the outpatient Dialysis/Apheresis Clinic at CHOP’s Buerger Center for Advanced Pediatric Care, located on the Raymond G. Perelman Campus. Mario & Gisele DiNatale, co-founders of the Alicia Rose Victorious Foundation, are so pleased the Art Cart will have a new home at CHOP and believe it will have a huge impact on hospitalized teen patients.
The DiNatale’s established ARVF in honor of their daughter, Alicia Rose DiNatale, who died in October 2002 after a 13-month battle with cancer. “During her treatments for cancer, both as an in-patient and out-patient 16-year-old, there were not a lot of more ‘grown up’ things to do to occupy her time. Now, with activity kits and projects, the time passes more quickly, and there’s a sense of accomplishment and purpose just by being creative.”
“Giving back to the communities we work in and live in is a central part of A.C. Moore’s mission. What better way is there to commemorate the opening of our Philadelphia flagship store than by helping those in need in this great city?” said Pepe Piperno owner and CEO of A.C. Moore. “We hope that the activities on the Art Cart will inspire children and teens battling illness in our communities – making the tough days a little bit brighter.”
Representatives from the Alicia Rose Victorious Foundation and A.C. Moore gathered in the Buerger Center on Thursday, April 20th to reveal the Art Cart to the Child Life team at CHOP.
About Alicia Rose Victorious Foundation
Strength and Support for Hospitalized Teens.
Alicia Rose Victorious Foundation (ARVF, Corp.) is a 501(c)3 non-profit charitable organization located in Voorhees, NJ. ARVF provides adolescent programs, and activities to enhance the quality of life for hospitalized teens battling cancer and other life-threatening illnesses. Since 2002, “Victorious 4 Teens” programs have helped more than 75,000 critically ill teens and their families during hospitalization. The Foundation has raised over $2 million funding 63 Teen Lounges, special rooms in hospitals where young teen patients can hang out, watch movies, listen to music, play video games, and/or use computers. ARVF has also distributed over 14,000 “Teen Kits & Bandana Pillows” to hospitalized teens, and hosted Proms in children’s hospitals. For more information about ARVF and to find out how you can help hospitalized teens, visit www.victoriousfoundation.org.
About A.C. Moore
A.C. Moore is a specialty retailer offering a vast selection of arts, crafts and floral merchandise to a broad demographic of customers. The first A.C. Moore store opened in Moorestown, New Jersey in 1985, and has expanded to more than 135 stores. Stores are located in the Eastern United States from Maine to Florida. A.C. Moore is devoted to being the first choice for product selection, value and service that inspires and fulfills unlimited creative possibilities. The assortment, convenience, service and pricing differentiate them from their competitors. The assortment of merchandise consists of more than 60,000 stock keeping units, or SKUs, with approximately 40,000 SKUs offered at each store at any one time. They also offer custom framing in the majority of their stores. In-store events and programs for children and adults provide hands-on arts and crafts experience and encourage the creativity of customers. For more information about A.C. Moore, visit http://www.acmoore.com/about.