Local IH Collectors Raise Cash for Children's Hospital
Published: Friday, December 27, 2019
It all started with a good idea, among a local group of tractor collectors, to add a charitable component to an upcoming auction. Earlier this month, the idea culminated with several families sharing stories of healing and hope.
When the Northern Indiana Chapter 33 International Harvester collectors decided to do something charitable, they were surprised to find that "2 plus 2 no longer equals 4." Generosity changes the equation, and now two plus two equals five, six or even more.
There is a synergy that happens when people partner for a charitable cause. They tend to give more, do more and feel more.
That describes what happened when the Chapter 33 IH collectors launched a fundraising campaign, known as "Filling a Wagon for Riley's," to benefit Riley Children's Hospital in Indianapolis. Funds were raised during a special auction held in September at the National IH Collector's Auction at Polk Auction Co. in New Paris. More than $25,000 was raised during that event for Riley's, with more coming in the weeks since.
For weeks, club officers wanted to keep the final tally secret, as they made plans for a big reveal during a year-end banquet on Dec. 8 in Plymouth. As part of those plans, they invited several Riley's patients and their families, all with unlikely connections to the IH group, to tell their stories prior to the unveiling.
These families somehow crossed paths with Chapter 33 members who brought them into the fundraising drive for Riley's.
As chapter 33 director Rob Meyers stated at the year-end banquet, "Special things don't happen by accident."
As an example, consider the story of Alicia Hoover of Syracuse. Alicia's friend, Sheri Miller, is a member of the Chapter 33 IH collector's group. Sheri asked Alecia to help her organize and sell IH T-shirts at the auction to raise money for Riley's. Alicia agreed and the two began their work.
Soon after, though, Alicia's daughter Chloe, 9, began experiencing episodes of chest pain. Alicia and her husband took Chloe to Riley Children's Hospital. There, the doctors told the family that Chloe was suffering from an irregular heart rhythm and soon began treating her.
Alicia said Chloe is responding well to the treatment, but the "special thing" about her story is that she committed to the T-shirt project—which benefited Riley's—before her daughter became a patient there.
Was it an odd coincidence? Chapter 33's Rob Meyers, who has a passion for the children's hospital, said this was one of many stories in which chapter members have been impacted by Riley's.
There is also the story of Mike and Tina Graber of Millersburg. Their daughter, Rayah, 14, was diagnosed with scoliosis, or a curvature of the spine. Rayah underwent surgery at Riley's in April of this year. Doctors inserted 22 screws and two titanium rods into her spine, correcting the curvature.
Mike isn't a member of the IH collector's group, but he met one of its leaders through a chance encounter on a hot July day in downtown Goshen. Mike and Rayah happened to be riding in the Elkhart County 4-H Fair parade in a wagon being pulled by a restored IH pickup. The pickup had been restored by his father and was part of Chapter 33's parade entry promoting its upcoming fundraiser.
Before the parade, Mike said he met Rob Meyers, and that is how he learned about the Riley's auction.
Was it simply a coincidence that Mike and Rayah, both of whom had no prior connection to the IH club, were riding in a Chapter 33 float promoting the Riley's fundraiser?
Based on the stories told at the banquet, these encounters were not accidents, but rather, divinely inspired.
Mike Graber credited "the angels at the hospital and the angels in this club."
As stated earlier, the Dec. 8 banquet, in which these stories were told, was the culmination, not the start, of the chapter's charitable effort. Earlier this year, chapter members initiated the project by traveling to Indianapolis to tour Riley Children's Hospital and meeting the staff. There, they noticed that little red wagons were used to move the young patients to various rooms throughout the hospital.
According to Amber Miller, associations coordinator for Riley Children's Hospital, the red wagons help reduce the "scary" factor that children have when they enter the healthcare unit. The wagons are so important, in fact, that the staff at Riley's actually considers them to be pieces of medical equipment.
Riley Children's Hospital receives over 320,000 patient visits per year, and has over 300 new cancer diagnoses annually.
Since red is the primary color of most Farmall and International Harvester equipment, Chapter 33 members were immediately endeared to the idea of featuring a little red wagon in their September auction.
When they prepared the wagon for the sale, they dressed it up with a Farmall decal and supplied a reversible pad that served as a cushion for the rider. It sold for $325 to a buyer from Howe.
Over the spring and summer, Chapter 33 members collected cash donations and spread the word about the upcoming auction for Riley's. Members donated a variety of IH-themed items, from quilts and clocks to milk cans and memorabilia. All of the donated items for the auction were placed inside a large wagon until the day of the sale.
IH collectors from Michigan gave $1,000 for the cause. A similar group from Illinois donated $500. Other chapters also donated items and equipment.
The Echoes of the Past club from northcentral Indiana sold homemade ice cream at the September event. They then donated the proceeds to the Riley campaign.
On Dec. 8, when the moment finally came to announce the final tally, Chloe and Rayah, as well as others, each held cards that contained one number from the final amount. Strung together, the numbers revealed a grand total of $33,333.33.
Keep in mind that this is Chapter 33. Another coincidence? Meyers said it's just another "special" thing that happened along the way.
Amber Miller, the Riley staff member, said $25,000 will be given to the hospital's pediatric oncology department, where the money will be used to purchase exam chairs, an ultrasound machine and diagnostic equipment. The remaining portion will be donated to the Herman Wells Center for Research, where matching grants are expected to multiply the amount by tenfold.
The club's generous donation also comes with a sponsorship of a little red wagon at Riley's. On Dec. 8, Miller surprised the members by showing off the wagon that will bear the chapter's name on its license plate. The unique item is now part of the wagon fleet at Riley's.
The banquet in Plymouth was about celebrating the amazing partnership between a group of red tractors owners and a nonprofit hospital that serves as a last resort for children in need of medical care. One of the speakers declared that healing "was God's work, but those people (at Riley's) were amazing."
From her perspective, Miller said this partnership is special. In her travels throughout Indiana, she frequently meets people who have been impacted by Riley's. With that in mind, she said it's not surprising that a group of IH tractor collectors would have the same experience as they went public with a fundraising drive. The difference, Miller said, was the method.
"We've never seen anything like the big giant wagon, so we had to definitely sponsor a wagon," she said. "It just was so important for this tractor club."
Looking back at a year of blessings, Meyers said he is thankful for everyone who helped to make the "Filling the Wagon for Riley" campaign a success.
One group's desire to do more and help others became contagious. The impact is immeasurable.
This is what generosity can do.
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