Starlight Children’s Foundation honors Segura with Golden Heart Award for his fundraising efforts.

AUSTIN, Texas, June 6, 2022 –Comedian Tom Segura shared what many say is the best form of medicine, laughter to kids at Dell Children’s Medical Center. 

Segura, one of the biggest names in the comedy business, and representatives from Starlight Children’s Foundation visited Dell Children’s Medical Center, bringing lots of smiles and amusement to many of its young patients. Dell Children’s is one of over 800 hospital partners of Starlight, a nonprofit that offers innovative programs – like Starlight Gaming, Starlight Virtual Reality, and Starlight Hospital Wear, among many others – free of charge through the organization’s online platform.  

The event kicked off with Aimee Finn, Sr. director of marketing and community engagement at Starlight Children’s Foundation, presenting Segura the Starlight Golden Heart Award to a small group of hospital staff members, including the child life specialist team. Segura was recognized for his donation and fundraising efforts through his community, raising over $40,000 for the nonprofit dedicated to delivering happiness to seriously ill children and their families. 

Before presenting the award, Finn said, “The mission to deliver happiness to seriously ill kids and their families cannot be done alone.We depend on generous supporters like Tom Segura, who leverage their platform to do good. From the bottom of our hearts, we thank you for supporting our work and being here today.”

“It’s an honor to be recognized by this great organization, but I don’t think I’m doing anything special. It’s the people involved day to day that deserve all the credit. Hopefully, me getting this award can bring more awareness to the awesome work Starlight does,” said Segura. 

The child life specialist teams at Dell Children’s and other Starlight hospitals play an integral role in connecting Starlight programs to pediatric patients coping with injuries, surgeries, and illnesses. Through the Starlight Hub, the nonprofit’s online platform, child life specialists can request programs – from Starlight Gaming to Starlight Deliveries of toys and games –as distraction tools for patients to help reduce stress and anxiety caused by hospitalization. Starlight ships the products to the hospital free of charge if the inventory is available.

“Play is truly an important part of the healing process, and partnerships with organizations like Starlight Children’s Foundation help bring joy and fun to our patients at Dell Children’s,” said Kim Stephens, director of child life and expressive therapies at Dell Children’s. “They are long-time supporters of our program and we are honored by Starlight’s unwavering support for Dell Children’s patients and families.” 

According to Dell Children’s child life team, many studies have shown that improving patients’ emotional and social well-being can positively impact their outcomes when coping with illnesses. Starlight programs provide hospitalized kids a distraction from negative feelings and an opportunity to play, helping improve their well-being. 

Immediately after the award presentation, Segura visited a small group of young patients in the hospital’s playroom for a friendly video game challenge on a Starlight Gaming Station donated by Starlight.Through a 30-year partnership with Nintendo®️, Starlight GamingStations are designed so they can roll anywhere in the hospital, enabling children to play video games from the comfort of their hospital bed or in a playroom with a group of kids like today.Additionally, these stations are manufactured to meet strict infection safety protocols. 

Finn said,“Today’s event is an excellent opportunity to unite our donors with our hospital partners to truly see our mission’s impact.When kids can experience playing a video game – with someone like Tom Segura–for just a moment, they forget why they’re in the hospital and enjoy the best part of being a kid.” 

“I’m very fortunate to have the life I have and to see an organization making life easier for children and their families in the toughest of situations is incredibly humbling. Starlight’s work is a great reminder that we can all do more and we have a responsibility when we are fortunate as I am, to be generous to others,” Segura said. 

Segura was able to join today’s event as he was taking a short break from his world tour, which resumes on Wednesday in Baltimore, Maryland. The tour continues through April 2023 across North America, Australia, and New Zealand, with more dates and locations yet to be announced. Segura is known for his Netflix specials Ball Hog, Disgraceful, Completely Normal, and Mostly Stories. 

Join Segura and Starlight in delivering happiness to hospitalized kids across the country by donating today.