8th grader starts card campaign, Art for Heart
Photo courtesy of Alexis Weldon
Students at St. Louise de Marillac Catholic School in Upper St. Clair made thousands of cards over the last year and donated them to people in hospitals and nursing homes.
Photo courtesy of Alexis Weldon
Melissa Marion, director of the Monongahela Valley Hospital Foundation, stands with Patrick Weldon after he collected homemade cards to donate to patients in the hospital.
Photo courtesy of Alexis Weldon
Patrick Weldon, 14, of Monongahela, was awarded the Prudential Spirit of Community Award after he collected homemade cards to donate to people in hospitals and nursing homes.
Photo courtesy of Alexis Weldon
One of the cards created by a students at St. Louise de Marillac Catholic School in Upper St. Clair
Photo courtesy of Alexis Weldon
One of the cards made by a student at St. Louise de Marillac Catholic School
What started out as a small act of kindness for a Mon Valley middle school student has grown into a much larger operation that’s spreading love throughout the region’s most vulnerable population.
After his summer basketball program was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 14-year-old Patrick Weldon, of Monongahela, decided to use his free time to volunteer with Meals on Wheels. He and his mother, Alexis Weldon, delivered meals to about 23 homes in their community for months.
“I pretty much realized that most of the people we delivered meals to are in wheelchairs or not very mobile,” Patrick said in a recent interview. “They stay in their homes pretty much 24/7.”
Especially during the pandemic, older populations and people with limited mobility found themselves homebound and isolated. Patrick decided to start making cards for folks to deliver with their meals.
“I thought if I let them know that people are thinking of them, that would help,” he said.
He said people were so excited to receive a new card each week, and even kept them on display in their homes.
“It really opened my eyes to the isolation of some people and how something simple like a card could really change their whole day and just really affect them,” Patrick said.
When he realized the impact of the cards, he decided to pitch a larger project to his art teacher, Susan Wagner, and principal, Ken Klase, at St. Louise de Marillac Catholic School in Upper St. Clair. He wanted to get his class involved with making cards for the Meals on Wheels program and also area nursing homes.
“It started at the beginning of the school year, and it started out small,” Klase said in a recent interview. “He saw the need to bring people’s spirits up. He thought it would be a good idea for his class to make the cards.”
Klase said that since the Catholic school does many service projects throughout the school year, they saw this as an opportunity.
“I think that’s part of our mission here – being a Catholic school is to reach out to others who are less fortunate than ourselves,” Klase said. “Our Gospel value this year was hope.”
Patrick has been learning remotely, lending some extra time and lunch breaks to be able to deliver meals and cards. Just last week, while on a school break, he and his mother were able to deliver a batch of cards to Monongahela Valley Hospital.
The approximate 550 students in preschool through eighth grade at the school started making cards with cheerful notes, Patrick said. Before delivery, they’d let the cards sit for three days to ensure they wouldn’t be spreading the virus.
Klase said it was amazing to see the students, their families, parents and grandparents get involved with the project and make cards together.
“It took off like wildfire here at the school,” Klase said. “It started out in art classes, but our kids took it upon themselves to start making them at home. It was spearheaded by Patrick. He’s a wonderful boy.”
They held “card drives,” Patrick said, around the holidays, sending out 500 cards at Thanksgiving and 700 at Christmas. Patrick is now coordinating the card deliveries with 15 different facilities across the region. He calls the project “Art for Heart.”
After UPMC Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh contacted Patrick asking for cards for their patients, Patrick decided to hold a winter/Valentine’s Day card drive, during which they sent out 3,040 cards. One student created 200 cards himself, Patrick said.
“We had enough cards to cover every patient in the hospital, plus a surplus for six other hospitals,” he said. “It started out pretty slowly, but this last drive, I couldn’t believe we got that many.”
Even Patrick’s grandfather, who was recently in the hospital, received a card through Patrick’s campaign.
“He’s very close with his grandparents, and he is an only child, so he really bonded with the people he delivered meals to because he’s just used to being around older people,” Patrick’s mother, Alexis, said. “My husband (Patrick Weldon Sr.) and I are extremely happy and proud that he channeled his energy in this direction. It’s nice to see he realizes what an impact something so simple can have.”
Klase was also quite proud of Patrick. That’s why he nominated Patrick for the Prudential Spirit of Community Award, a national program with scholarship winners at the high school and middle school level per state. Patrick won the middle school level for Pennsylvania’s top youth volunteer of the year.
The award included a $2,500 scholarship, a silver medallion and an invitation to a national ceremony in April, where he could potentially become one of 10 honorees to be named America’s top youth volunteers of the year.
“He’s well beyond his years for taking on something like this,” Klase said. “No matter what he does, he goes above and beyond.”
Patrick thanked his classmates, teacher and everyone involved with his project, for their support and participation. Though it’s his last year at the school, he plans to be involved with the card campaign for years to come.
“COVID was the main reason for the isolation, but I think it would be a good thing to continue no matter what,” Patrick said. “I think we could probably keep up the numbers.”
Patrick also wants to reach other schools and organizations to collect even more cards for donation. Anyone interested in joining his efforts can visit his Facebook page, “Art for Heart.”
Klase said he suspects the school will continue the card campaign in the future, and possibly turn it into an annual Valentine’s Day tradition.
“I think Patrick is a true ambassador for our school,” Klase said. “He’s going to leave his mark in the community whatever he does.”