Shippensburg University’s Love Your Melon (LYM) Campus Crew won a visit to the Hershey Medical Center Feb.22, where they delivered more than 100 beanies to children affected by pediatric cancer. 

Each semester  LYM campus crews across the region and nation compete in challenges to win credits, visits and prizes. The SU LYM campus crew was first in its central region for most of the semester, and one of the top five crews in the nation out of about 840 crews nationwide. 

SU’s crew won multiple challenges, winning prizes such as beanies among other apparel, Superhero Adventures and a hospital visit.

 “Love Your Melon is an apparel brand dedicated to giving a hat to every child battling cancer in America as well as supporting nonprofit organizations who lead the fight against pediatric cancer,” according to loveyourmelon.com.

Unfortunately, due to the flu and cold season, most of the children battling cancer were in the intensive care unit (ICU) and unable to see visitors. 

SU’s crew set up a table in the lobby of the hospital where family members and nurses came to pick beanies for children in the ICU. 

The crew was able to visit one of the children at the Hershey Medical Center, who LYM Vice Captain Averie Bye-Dickerson described as “[having] the most beautiful golden, honey-brown eyes.” 

They spent about an hour with the child coloring and making conversation and sand art. 

While the crew was grateful to spend time with the child, cre members experienced first-hand how exhausting this battle can be. 

Bye-Dickerson explained that it was hard at the end of the visit to watch the patient try to climb up into her wheel chair so she could go back to her room, because she was too exhausted to walk. The child had a long day, starting with BINGO and finishing with an hour visit with the SU’s LYM Crew.

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