Wisconsin mom brings holiday cheer to children in cancer treatment

Wisconsin mom Laura Shea is giving back this winter, bringing joy to children who are spending the holidays in the hospital. Shea founded the MACC Fund Toy Closet in 2021, and since then, the initiative has provided over a thousand children in cancer treatment with gifts and toys.

“My daughter was diagnosed with leukemia in November of 2020, and we were in the hospital for about a month,” said Shea. “During that time, she was able to go to the toy closet and pick out toys that would help her throughout the day, keep her occupied as little prizes for when she would have blood draws and other procedures.”

Shea wants to give that opportunity to other families with children who are battling cancer. “It just really helped her adapt to the situation that she was in, and helped her be a little more brave during those procedures,” she says.

(Photo: Laura Shea)

The closet relies on donations and gifts from the public. “We have an Amazon wishlist – so everything on there is picked out by my six-year-old,” said Shea. “She helps make this toy list up every year, and then the items are shipped directly to us. And then whenever we go down to her appointments, we bring boxes and wagons full of toys.”

Shea has seen the program expand over the past three years, and is confident that 2024 will be its biggest year yet. “We usually range between 500 and 700 individual items that we are able to donate,” said Shea. “We have thankfully been able to increase that number every year since we started doing this.”

You can help contribute to this year’s toy closet by purchasing from the fund’s Amazon wishlist.