Teamsters Joint Council 13 donates $34K to St. Louis Children’s Hospital’s Snowflake Village

By SHERI GASSAWAY
Assistant Editor

St. Louis – Continuing its tradition of bringing smiles to the faces of children hospitalized over the Christmas holiday, Teamsters Joint Council 13 has donated a record-breaking $34,000 to St. Louis Children’s Hospital’s Snowflake Village program.

Since 2014, the council has raised more than $211,000 for the program, which provides toys for children in the hospital on Christmas Day. Money raised for the program comes from the annual Joint Council 13 Buddy Bass Tournament.

‘SOMETHING MORE WE CAN DO’
“They reached out to us about 10 years ago asking us to come help wrap the gifts, and we volunteered our time,” said Joint Council 13 President Derek Kropp. “After talking with them, we decided as Teamsters maybe there’s something more we can do here, and collectively we decided to do our Buddy Bass Tournaments again to help.”

Kropp said the yearly donation is the single largest financial contribution the program receives. The council started out by donating $11,000 the first year, and last year’s donation was nearly $27,000.

LARGEST DONATION
“This is the largest amount we’ve ever given to the program,” Kropp said. “I want to thank everyone involved in the bass tournament that made this possible. Our members, their employers and local businesses donated cash and prizes for the annual event, and we couldn’t have done this without them.”

Snowflake Village uses the money to buy new toys, games, stuffed animals and clothing items for children confined to the hospital on Christmas Day and their siblings. The contributions help parents whose financial circumstances are such that they can’t afford to buy gifts for their children.

‘SET US UP FOR SUCCESS’
“We are truly grateful for the council’s donation,” said Haley Cooper, the hospitals philanthropy officer. “This gift just allows so much more flexibility in terms of the toys we’re able to provide to families and sets us up for success.”

For more information on St. Louis Children’s Hospital or to donate throughout the year, visit stlouischildrens.org/giving/give/donate-items-from-our-wish-list.