Duck Donuts in Upper St. Clair donates $3,300 to childhood cancer nonprofit
As part of the company’s Quack Gives Back campaign, the Duck Donuts store in Upper St. Clair recently donated $3,300 to Gabe’s Chemo Duck Program, a childhood cancer nonprofit organization.
Gabe’s Chemo Duck Program provides an educational program supporting children and families living with cancer. The program is centered around a 12-inch, stuffed animal duck used for medical play therapy, as well as a bilingual companion overview book, a printable activity book and an educational DVD that includes a cartoon about the program.
The $3,300 provided 110 Gabe’s Chemo Duck Programs for kids in UPMC’s Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.
“Essentially it’s designed to reduce anxiety during a really stressful time in their lives and to have a companion that kind of goes through the chemotherapy process with them,” said Andy Jarusinsky, owner of the Duck Donuts in Upper St. Clair, which opened in June.
Jarusinsky and other representatives from the Upper St. Clair Duck Donuts visited Children’s Hospital on Nov. 29 to deliver the programs.
“They brought us in and they educated us on how they use the program, how they interact with the families, how they introduce the programs to the patients and how excited the kids are to have that,” Jarusinsky said.
“Myself and some members of my team met with a few patients and gave some ducks. It was very touching. These kids were in various stages of their treatment. Everyone of them smiled. They were so happy to receive it. It really brought all the hard work that we did for the program home for us. It was a really wonderful, humbling experience.”
Jarusinsky said his store raised most of its money from selling special Chemo Duck rubberducks at its store.
“Being a good business person and a good member of the community is giving back where you can make a difference,” he said. “It helps from a business standpoint but also from a personal standpoint that people are supporting you and you’re supporting them back. It works in a beautiful way.”
The $3,300 donation was one of the highest amounts donated to Gabe’s Chemo Duck Program from any Duck Donuts store. Jarusinsky isn’t surprised.
“I knew that Pittsburgh would come through for this campaign,” he said. “It’s a giving city. We support ourselves, and we support each other.”
The Quack Gives Back campaign is done by all of the Duck Donuts franchises, as more than 150 locations raised $75,000 total for Gabe’s Chemo Duck Program, providing more than 2,000 Gabe’s Chemo Duck Programs at 21 different pediatric oncology groups.