On Sunday, September 8th, the Spread The Joy Foundation had their first ever fundraising event at the Triumph Brewery in downtown Princeton.
The event was full house, hosting more than 100 guests. The event started out with socializing amongst the guests as they enjoyed the hor d’oeuvres, wine and signature Brewery beer. Everyone had heard about how heart-felt the charity was and were excited to learn more.
Then, Chief Joy Spreader (as she likes to be called rather than CEO) Shalini Samtani, came to the mike to explain how “Spread The Joy” started. She recalled the moment that brought “utmost joy to her heart” was when her hospitalized child experienced a moment of “pure and honest joy” at a hospital Halloween party playing with simple things like slime, and other arts and crafts. That’s when Shalini decided that every hospitalized child needs to feel this level of excitement! This inspiration lead to the creation of the Spread The Joy Foundation. The charity’s mission is to spread joy to hospitalized kids fighting major pediatric illnesses in the form of a little Joy Box- a simple, genuine and small act of kindness to lift a child’s spirits.
Spread The Joy’s first fundraising event at Triumph Brewery exceeded its goal of raising 1000 boxes ($10,000+) to give to hospitalized children. The charity currently provides Joy Boxes to The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Boston Children’s Hospital, McGill University Health Center and Penn- Medicine Princeton.The foundation’s goal is to one day be able to welcome every hospitalized child in America with a Joy Box. Mrs. Samtani concluded by saying: “We are so honored to be a part of this movement, and if these simple items can bring so much joy to suffering children, then we are grateful for the opportunity to be of service.”
Spread The Joy Foundation is a public charity under Internal Revenue Code section 170 (b) (1) (a) (vi) and has tax exempt status under section 501(c)(3). Donations to the Spread The Joy Foundation are tax deductible (EIN is 83-2047592) and can be made directly on the website at: www.spreadthejoy.org
