- [Narrator] There was a special delivery
at Akron Children's Hospital on February 20th.
In honor of Lexi Barker's fifth birthday,
the little girl from Alliance who has been a cancer patient
at the Showers Family Center for Childhood Cancer
and Blood Disorders for two years,
wanted to do a pajama drive.
She appreciated a pair of soft pajamas she found
on her hospital bed, which were much more comfortable
than the hospital gowns.
The family thought they'd collect 200 to 300 pajamas
to take back to the hospital,
but in about three weeks' time,
they collected more than 1,800 pairs from all over the area
and around the world.
(family chattering)
- Yep, we're waiting for the next one.
(Lexi chattering)
(family chattering)
- [Woman] You know what, we're gonna follow this gentleman
in the blue coat.
- Hi, bud!
Want me to carry that for you?
- [Boy] Yes.
- Yeah?
- It's okay.
- [Boy] It's too heavy, plus that one has too much.
(family chattering)
- I got this, I can handle it.
(woman laughs)
(excited chattering)
(woman laughs)
(elevator beeping)
- They were standing.
- [Man] I bet they were.
- All over this.
- [Woman] It got a little out of hand.
(laughter)
- When we started this, we thought maybe 100,
if we were lucky.
- [Man] I think it went overboard.
- [Woman] We never expected almost 2,000.
- [Man] And they're just...
- I can't lift that (mumble) on the ground.
(scattered laughter)
(all chattering)
- All right, Lexi did a pajama drive for her birthday.
For all of her friends at the hospital.
And we've collected...
- 1,880,
thank you.
We were at 1,878 pajamas this morning.
26 robes, 298 pairs of slippers,
and then $775 in cash, which we used to buy totes
and storage bags so that everything
could be organized for them.
- [Woman] And this is in, like, three weeks?
- Yes. - Yes.
- [Woman] And tell me why, why did you do this?
- Why'd we do it?
'Cause the robes, you don't like the,
what don't you like up here to wear?
- The gowns. - You don't like the gowns.
- [Woman] The gowns.
Are they itchy or they're just not comfy?
- They're not comfy.
- [Woman] Okay. Well I heard--
- They're not too fashionable either.
- [Woman] I heard when you got here,
you had a pair of pajamas and you thought that was cool,
is that right?
And so you thought that you should grab a,
collect a couple pajamas (laughing)
- A lot!
- [Woman] A lot. - A lot.
- Certainly the fact that so many people
have gotten involved to help support the patients
going through treatment for cancer and blood disorders
is important, and every little bit helps.
And we really, you know, we want them to feel at home,
we want them to feel comfortable,
and pajamas is one way to do that.
And we have recently made some requirements
to help reduce infections in our immunocompromised patients,
and that's that the pajamas have to change every day.
And so often, families don't have that many changes of PJs,
and sometimes they're brought in on an emergent basis,
so they don't have time to pack a suitcase
just full of pajamas together.
So I think we have enough now that probably every patient
can change daily without any problem at all.
- [Woman] Mom and Dad, you said that this, I mean,
these donations are from all over the world?
- Mm-hmm.
- Yeah.
- [Woman] How, where?
- She's got...
- England, Ireland, Hawaii, all over the states.
- [Woman] So just every day, packages have been arriving,
and at different drop off places?
- Absolutely.
- [Woman] And they're still coming?
- Yes. - They're still coming.
I'm so sorry.
(laughing)
They're still coming.
- We will figure it out (laughs)
Thank you so much, happy birthday!