ROYAL OAK, MI — Volunteers with flashlights waved them high above their heads as the clock struck 8 p.m., shining beams of light into the cold night sky — and straight into the hospital windows.
Exactly 10 minutes later, the enthusiastic crowd, still holding their flashlights high, shouted “sweet dreams” in unison to the children in the hospital several floors above.
The nightly tradition of “Moonbeams for Sweet Dreams” once again illuminates the night outside the window. Corewell Health Children's Department Hospital in Royal Oak in suburban Detroit.
Every evening for 10 minutes, volunteers standing outside the hospital shine flashlights on the pediatric wards above, spreading a message of hope and joy. Children respond to this feeling with their lights, which illuminate those below.
“Being stuck in the hospital and feeling like the world is moving on without you on the outside, you feel a little isolated, a little lonely, it feels like maybe you've been forgotten in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season,” said Amanda Lefkoff, a child life specialist at Corwell.
Among the children at the hospital is 4-year-old Zoe Hostetter, who is undergoing chemotherapy. On a recent night, she shined her flashlight on well-wishers gathered below with her grandfather, Tim Schuele, at her side.
“It’s just a big group of people that they don’t know, but they see the love coming from the light,” he said. “They are here alone or just with close relatives, and so on for several days.”
However, these nights the children are far from alone.
Kevin Barringer was among those flashing lights in the windows one evening last week. Barringer's son, Connor, spent two months in hospital in 2020 recovering from a spinal injury, and they found themselves under fire.
“It gets pretty dark in there for both the kids and the parents,” Kevin Barringer said. “When people down here let them know there are people with them and shine all their light down there, it means a lot.”
Stephanie McMillan sat in a darkened room, holding her three-month-old daughter, Wren, in one hand and a flashlight in the other, shining a beam of light toward the crowd below.
“It helps the people who are here not to feel so alone and the community members to be a part of bringing Christmas joy to the people who are here,” McMillan said.
The hospital also hosts holiday parties, quilt making and activities for families. Plus, the volunteer dresses up as Santa and visits patients on their wards and at parties.
Corwell has been overseeing the Moonbeams event since 2017. This year's event began on December 9 and will continue through Hanukkah and every night until the two days leading up to it. Christmas.
This year's participants included high school groups, scout troops and sororities, said Lisa Muma, a registered nurse and one of the event's organizers. Sports teams often join in, including a youth hockey team that comes with flashlights on their sticks.
Dozens to hundreds of people gather each night, depending on the day of the week and the weather.
“We really wanted to find a way to remind the families, the children and the patients at the hospital that we are still thinking about them, that we are here for them, that we support them,” Lefkoff said. In turn, the pediatric ward of the hospital is somewhat reminiscent of Las Vegas, where “days and nights seem to merge together.”
But the Moonbeam event gives children something to look forward to during a difficult time for many families.
“It's a wonderful way…to really give them a lot of love when they're going through a tough time,” she said.
