Three-year-old UCLA patient Aiden Smith had not smiled for days after his kidney surgery, until he saw the Harley-Davidson motorcycles, said his mother, Danielle Smith.
“Just seeing him smile and be excited; he’s just his old self again,” Smith said.
For Aiden and other patients at the Mattel Children’s Hospital at UCLA, the 19th annual Holiday Toy Drive on Sunday was an opportunity to leave their hospital rooms and cares behind while enjoying the combined excitement of motorcycles and gifts.
The first event was held in 1989 after the efforts of Joyce Savisky-Chance, whose son Johnnie was a patient at the UCLA Medical Center.
After Johnnie lost his battle with cancer, Savisky-Chance was inspired to find a way to repay the hospital for its hard work.
“I wanted to do something to give back to the hospital,” Savisky-Chance said. “They did their best to save his life.”
As a member of the Southern California Anaheim-Fullerton Harley Owners Group, Savisky-Chance participated in a toy drive for another children’s hospital and realized that this would be the perfect way to honor her son’s memory. She then cooperated with her Harley Owners Group to organize a toy donation drive. These toys were delivered to the UCLA hospital by her fellow motorcyclists, allowing them to interact with the children.
After initial reluctance from the hospital, the first Holiday Toy Drive was launched involving 18 motorcycles. Now, the event has increased to more than 100 bikes and riders bearing hundreds of gifts.
By 9:30 a.m., the first wave of leather-clad motorcyclists roared into the roundabout in front of the hospital.
With Santa as a passenger on one of the motorcycles, the bikes parked close to the entrance to allow easy access for curious patients to see the bikes.
Shortly afterward, a large black truck arrived, carrying all of the collected gifts.
Due to parking and space concerns, the second wave of bikers was forced to park in the nearby parking structure and make its entrance to the hospital on foot. When the bikers arrived, many of them had smiles on their faces and cheerily greeted hospital staff and fellow motorcyclists.
The arrival of the bikers was followed by the coordination of the “love line,” a method of unloading the collected toys.
After forming two lines near the black truck, the bikers passed the toys one by one to each other until the presents were gathered in a large pile inside the hospital.
This multitude of gifts, including books, board games and Barbie dolls, will be added to the hospital’s “Holiday Shopping Room.”
In this room, parents can choose presents for their children to alleviate the stress of shopping for holiday gifts, said Hilary Gan, a UCLA hospital Child Life/Child Development department specialist.
Both toys and tax-free donations were gathered by members of the Southern California Anaheim-Fullerton Harley Owners Group. Donations were received from Nicholas Chevrolet in Garden Grove, as well as from anonymous donors, and a total of $2,442 was collected, Savisky-Chance said.
Several patients who were well enough to leave their beds were able to see and sit on the bikes. These children, assisted by their parents or hospital staff, crowded around the motorcycles, examined their reflections in the shine of the paint, and exclaimed at the holiday decorations that adorned several bikes.
One of these children was 16-month-old Ryan Gilmore, who has been hospitalized for two and a half weeks.
“I think it’s so wonderful that all these kind people have come to visit these kids,” said his mother Katherine Gilmore.
“I can tell he’s really excited to see the bikes and Santa. Last year, he was scared of him, but this year, he was pointing him out.”
Motorcyclists were then invited to visit the children who were unable to leave their beds for the spectacle.
“It’s a very emotional thing for any of us who go through the ward itself,” said Harley Owners Group member, Jeff Fago. “Children seem to just love Harley-Davidsons. Their eyes just light up, and it’s heartwarming to do something for these kids.”