Caring for a child with complex medical needs can be difficult - mentally, emotionally, and financially. That's why Variety raises money each year for the Compassion Fund. 

The Compassion Fund allows front-line social workers to identify needs and distribute funds immediately, providing much-needed relief for families. Variety partners with Blank Children's Hospital, Broadlawns Medical Center, ChildServe, Mary Greeley Medical Center, and MercyOne Des Moines in central Iowa, and Mercy Medical Center and UnityPoint Health-St. Luke's Hospital in eastern Iowa to help families with children who are critically ill or are receiving specialized medical treatment. Additionally, the Compassion Fund purchases sleep sacks for newborns at these partner hospitals. Sleep sacks are the #1 item purchased at hospitals, and are designed to help prevent SIDS (Sudden infant death syndrome).

The Compassion Fund provides comfort, care and fulfills immediate needs such as;

• A gas card for travel to appointments
• Meals for a parent who spends weeks at the hospital
• Payment of immediate bills such as phone, heat or electricity
• A birthday cake for a child who will spend their special day in a hospital bed
• Care for siblings when parents need to stay with their ill child

Families who have been supported by the Compassion Fund are forever grateful for your generous donations. Here's what some of them have to say:

"Someone out there helped with a co-pay. They don't even know us. They don't know anything about us, but they helped. It's amazing."

"Living on one paycheck is hard. To some people it may just be a cell phone bill or just gas, but to us, it's really helped us out."

"Getting hit with this, it rocked us really bad. I have four other children at home. We are thankful for the Variety Compassion Fund for relieving some stress."

"People who donate to the Compassion Fund are genuine superheroes. Words cannot describe how thankful we are for the Compassion Fund - it has made life much easier for little Matthew and we are so grateful"