December 21, 2021

As another year at Texas Children’s comes to a close, our team members recently gathered, safely, to take a brief, yet meaningful moment to celebrate the holidays. Over the years, one of our favorite holiday traditions has been Bread & Wassail, but with the changing times, we had to get creative to safely celebrate the season.

Beside our wonderful team members, the stars of this year’s event were delicious Nothing Bundt cakes in six different flavors – red velvet, classic vanilla, lemon, white chocolate raspberry and chocolate chocolate chip, as well as some tasty beverages to wash them down.

The event proved popular among team members across our campuses as we distributed more than 16,000 Nothing Bundt cakes! Even our therapy dogs got in on the fun and were doing everything they could to get a taste.

We look forward to many more fun events on the horizon as we look ahead to building our bright future Tomorrow, Together.

December 3, 2021

Review the schedule, during which you will be able to receive a free individually packaged cake and beverages on a “grab-and-go” basis. Read more

November 2, 2021

From Día de los Muertos to Hanukkah and Kwanzaa, the fall and winter seasons are full of holiday celebrations and all the things that come with them: making memories with family and friends, expressing love and gratitude, and reflecting on historic events that have shaped our lives and communities across generations.

There’s often so much good energy flowing from November through January that you don’t have to recognize any particular holiday to understand what makes this time of year so special. In fact, a growing number of Americans say they don’t celebrate any holidays at all.

But whether you’re decorating with diyas for Diwali, waiting up for Santa or just enjoying a few days off work – there is still that little something in the air for many, including our One Amazing Team. Read on to learn more about some of the cultural and religious holidays observed right here within our Texas Children’s family.

You can also share your own most cherished team, family, holiday and seasonal traditions with our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion team via e-mail. We’d love to hear your story and potentially feature it on Connect or our Texas Children’s social media page!

December 29, 2020

This year, due to COVID-19, we reimagined some of our beloved traditions to help make the season bright for our patients. Happy Holidays from Texas Children’s!

December 22, 2020

While COVID-19 has impacted holiday celebrations in the workplace, The Woodlands Acute Care staff introduce us to new traditions on their unit to spread the holiday cheer. Read more

December 14, 2020

This installment of the “Take FIVE” series provided by the Psychology Section’s Collaborative on Racial Equity and Inclusion (REI) for Black Youth focuses on how to incorporate anti-racism into the holiday season. The holidays are an important time for families to establish traditions that can carry on for a lifetime, especially for children – what better opportunity is there to make anti-racism part of the foundation? Here are 5 actions you can take this holiday season:

1. Books always make a great gift idea for the children in your life! Consider books by Black authors – here are some ideas:

  • Black Is a Rainbow, Angela Joy
  • Parker Looks Up, Parker and Jessica Curry
  • Kamala & Maya’s Big Idea, Meena Harris
  • Brown Boy Joy, Dr. Thomishia Booker
  • Hair Love, Matthew A. Cherry
  • SULWE, Lupita Nyong’o
  • My Brother Charlie, Holly Robinson Peete & Ryan Elizabeth Peete
  • President of the Whole Fifth Grade, Sherri Winston
  • A Good Kind of Trouble, Lisa Moore Ramee
  • ABC I Love Me, Miriam Muhammad
  • The King of Kindergarten, Derrick Barnes
  • Saturday, Oge Mora
  • A is for Ambition: A Motivational Read for Future Go Getters, Antonio Hunter

2. As we outlined in our post on supporting Black-owned businesses, buying these books from Black-owned bookstores can make a big difference. Here are a few to check out:

3. Toys are fun for the holidays, too! Consider buying toys that represent Black children or are from Black-owned toy companies, such as:

4. The holidays aren’t all about consumerism – volunteering is an important holiday tradition for many families. Here are some local organizations with volunteer opportunities:

5. What is the holiday season without music? Enjoy some of our favorite holiday tunes by Black artists:

  • “The Christmas Song” (Chestnuts) by Nat King Cole
  • “Deck The Halls” by Pentatonix
  • This Christmas by Donny Hathaway
  • I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus – Jackson 5
  • Santa Claus is Coming to Town – Jackson 5
  • Do you Hear What I Hear – Whitney Houston
December 7, 2020

The halls of Texas Children’s are now decked for the holiday season! However, while we are committed to making this celebratory season as memorable as possible for our patients, families and staff, it is also imperative that we shine a light on the numerous safety precautions we must take in order to prevent cases of COVID-19. Through a system-wide approach, an array of holiday programs and experiences have been re-imagined to honor our beloved traditions and bring a season of merriment, while also adjusting to adhering to necessary safety precautions.

  • Child Life and Volunteer Services teams will provide a wide array of safe activities and programs, including craft stations, holiday-themed games, goodie bags, photo booths with festive props, letters to Santa stations, as well as personalized virtual experiences with Santa.
  • Community donors are allowed to continue providing commercially prepared individually packaged meals for patient families. Food donations for staff will not be accepted.
  • This holiday season, special groups will not be permitted to provide onsite activities, serve meals or distribute gifts directly to patients and families.
  • As a reminder, potlucks, parties and social gatherings in the workplace should not be held. Please consider other options in celebrating the holidays with your team members. While gatherings are restricted at Texas Children’s, you are encouraged to think through alternative options for celebrating with your team members. Some ideas include facilitating a card exchange or hosting a virtual holiday party via Teams. Learn more about our Holiday Season Guidance.
  • If you are planning on attending or hosting a holiday gathering in the community, please be advised that the CDC offers direction and advises that you assess current COVID-19 levels in the community prior to making a determination on whether or not to host an event. Currently, the CDC recommends hosting celebrations virtually or with members of your immediate household only. To learn more, click here.

Thanks to the generous toy and gift donations from families, staff, organizations and our community, Texas Children’s receives many donations during the holiday season. To support this giving, Volunteer Services will host contactless Candy Cane Lane Donation Drive-Through events at designated locations, on Saturday, December 19. Donors may also schedule a donation drop-off by contacting Volunteer Services. For donation-related questions, please contact Volunteer Services at volunteerservices@texaschildrens.org.

Thank you for leading the way and setting an example for your team members, our patients, their families, your families and our community.