The Almirola Family Fund

in support of Levine Children’s Hospital

The Almirola Family Fund was created by Janice & Aric Almirola to positively impact children and families being treated at Atrium Health’s Levine Children’s Hospital.  Initially, the Almirola Family Fund provided funding for “comfort kits” for children and families being admitted to Levine Children’s Hospital.  Designed to provide comfort for hospitalized families, the kits include kid-friendly items such as a coloring book, crayons, a crossword puzzle, and playing cards, as well as parent-focused items like a hospital reference guide, personal items to aid in rest and relaxation, and a book to record milestones and write down important questions for their care team.  “The comfort kits provide a smile, a welcomed distraction, and some ‘southern hospitality’ during stressful and uncertain times for our families,” says Kelcey Pfeiffer, Patient Experience Manager at Levine Children’s Hospital. “We are grateful to the Almirola family for their gracious support and for having a positive impact on children and families during their stay at Levine Children’s Hospital.”

A message from the Almirola family:

I’m Aric Almirola, a 34-year-old dad to five-year-old Alex and four-year-old Abby living in Mooresville, N.C. with my wife Janice. We chose to support the Levine Children’s Hospital in Charlotte, N.C. after our week-long stay when our daughter Abby was admitted with RSV at three weeks old. This past year we funded comfort kits to be provided to children who are admitted on the ninth floor of the hospital. Our goal is to continue to grow our donation and raise funds to provide comfort kits for children and their families admitted to the entire children’s hospital. The ninth floor at Levine Children’s Hospital admits approximately 2,500 children per year and the entire children’s hospital admits approximately 10,000 children per year.

Comfort kits consist of a puzzle book, question book, coloring book and crayons, deck of cards, ear plugs, pen, eye mask, lip balm, moisturizer, slippers, privacy door hanger and an information packet with a schedule of weekly activities, and a map of the hospital and restaurants located around the area. Comfort kits are distributed to families to help ease their stay in an unfamiliar environment and provide information and resources that are available to them and their child.

We personally hand out comfort kits as volunteers at the hospital and the feelings we experience while meeting the children and families is overwhelming. It puts things in perspective for us to come face-to-face with the parents and children that are dealing with illnesses and aren’t in the comfort of their home. We hope this small gesture provides a positive impact on each family.

Unfortunately, we all know someone who has been affected by an illness and spends unexpected time in a medical facility. If you feel compelled we’d greatly appreciate a contribution, as any amount is helpful towards providing the comfort kits. If you don’t have the financial resources to donate, Levine Children’s Hospital is always looking for volunteers (link to volunteer page) if you wish to provide assistance in another manner.

Thank you for visiting our donation page.

-Aric, Janice, Alex and Abby