Published: Jan. 26, 2012
LANSING, Mich. - Young Patients in the Sparrow Children's Center played today in a heap of teddy bears collected during the MSU hockey team's annual Teddy Bear Toss.
One of the furry friends, a 52-inch-tall brown bear, will go home with Tyller Cantwell, 11, a "huge" Spartan fan.
"I think this is awesome," said Tyller's mom, Ivy Olson of Eaton Rapids.
Fans threw the bears onto the ice after the first Spartan goal during the team's Jan. 14 game against Northern Michigan University. Senior defenseman AJ Sturges, Forward Justin Hoomaian and Center Brett Perlini visited the playroom and played with the children today.
"It's just such a wonderful thing that the community does," said Joy Wiseman, Director of Development for the Sparrow Foundation. "We at Sparrow really wanted to thank the fans for doing this for our young Patients."
For more than a century, Sparrow has been a leader in caring for children. The first hospital in mid-Michigan to offer a dedicated children's unit, Sparrow today is home to the region's only full-service pediatric emergency department. As the region's Children's Miracle Network hospital, Sparrow is able to provide families the most advanced technology and treatment options in pediatric and neonatal care.