Northwestern Helps Facilitate Donations from Kohl’s Department Store
Posted on April 16, 2008
The kids at Washburn Elementary School in Bloomington, Minn., received a surprise donation of stuffed animals and picture books last week.
Karen Brezinka, NCTMB, Northwestern Clinical Supervisor, discovered through her sister, a Kohl’s Department Store employee, that the store had an excess of the stuffed animals and books and was looking for a place to donate the items. Knowing that Northwestern had a relationship with Washburn, she suggested the idea to Kohl’s.
"I knew we had an association with Washburn from news articles in Northwestern Today and thought they would be a good fit since they are in the Bloomington community,” Brezinka said.
Several boxes of the stuffed animals were also donated to the Pillsbury House crisis nursery and after school programs.
Sarah Erickson, Northwestern Community Relations intern, helped facilitate the donation to Washburn, which was delivered on April 11 to Principal Jon Millerhagen.
Millerhagen said the items will be used in a reading incentive plan to reward kids.
"It’s more fun to give them away,” he said.
Millerhagen said the school’s relationship with Northwestern, whether it’s tangible donations like this or Northwestern students spending time with kids at the school, has been “better than great.”
"Northwestern Health Sciences always gives us more than we give back,” he said. “It’s a ton of fun, and it’s easy to get cooperation.”