A Little Bear Can Make a Big Difference

Megan Pascarelli would love to have received a teddy bear during the holidays when she was a sick little girl. Now a West Chester University junior from Landenberg majoring in early childhood and special education, Pascarelli is pleased to be able to collect bears for the University’s Bear Fair.

“I went through a lot of health problems growing up,” she says. “Anything that brought me comfort literally got me through it.”

Bear Fair is an annual teddy bear drive organized and run by West Chester University students. Now in its 13th year, it supports Delaware Valley children in hospitals and through agencies such as Family Services. More than 36,000 teddy bears have been given away in the past 12 years – including 5,798 bears last year.

“Every child deserves to have a wonderful holiday and I will do anything I can to make that happen,” says Pascarelli, who has collected bears for the fair for the past three years although this is her first year on the committee.

The teddy bears provide comfort to children in need, such as those impacted by HIV/AIDS; those in hospitals or shelters; those who have an ill or imprisoned parent; or those who have lost everything in a house fire or other disaster.

University students get nearly as much from their efforts as the children who receive the teddy bears. “It gives us a way to spread holiday cheer without leaving campus,” says Philadelphia native and first-time Bear Fair participant Justin W.R. Smith, a senior majoring in professional studies.

Confidentiality issues prevent the students from personally handing the toys to children so, through the Office of Service-Learning and Volunteer Programs, they work with case managers who deliver the bears. As Kelly Tuey notes, the emotional impact the teddy bears make is conveyed in writing rather than in person: “After reading the handmade thank you cards from the kids and thank you letters from the agencies, it’s easy to understand what comfort these teddy bears bring.”

Tuey, a psychology major from Scranton, has been involved with the Bear Fair all four of her years at West Chester. The appeal of this philanthropic project lingers after graduation: A number of alumni arrange for collections at their offices or churches.

The region’s businesses also partner with students to round up teddy bears. One of the longest partnerships is with the Stadium Grille, which sets aside days when patrons can mention “Bear Fair” to have a portion of their bill donated to the fair. Wendell August Forge at Main Street in Exton also supports the Bear Fair with benefit days. Both businesses are collection sites as are Fulton Bank locations in Downingtown and Jennersville as well as Moonbounce Adventures in West Chester.
The fair can never get too many bears – there is always a child who can benefit. Collection of teddy bears (new ones only) will continue through Friday, Dec. 4, when the committee will crowd into the basement of Killinger Hall to sort and package the bears. Campus collection locations are academic buildings, Sykes Student Union and the Newman Center on Trinity Drive. Monetary donations and checks are also accepted (make checks payable to “SSI 380 Bear Fair”).

For more information contact West Chester University’s Office of Service-Learning and Volunteer Programs: 610-436-3379.