'We Give Them Hope': PWC Superheroes Brighten Day For Children's Hospital Patients

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — As children's hospital patients brave battles against cancer and other illnesses, their rooms were filled with smiles and laughter as superheroes appeared hanging outside their windows.

Those superheroes were members of the Prince William County Department of Fire and Rescue and other regional firefighters, who rappelled from the roof of the Inova Women’s Hospital tower and the Inova L.J. Murphy Children’s Hospital during a recent visit. The visits from firefighters outside hospital have become commonplace since the COVID-19 pandemic, as visitors were off limits for the young patients. Before the pandemic, superheroes would typically visit children in their hospital rooms.

Fairfax County Firefighter Loren Jewell, a childhood cancer survivor, helped start the rappelling effort during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"When COVID happened, it became more of a pressing thing," said Jewell. "The children couldn’t have any kind of visitors or any kind of entertainment, so we started doing it. It was really well received by the kids and families, staff and doctors. Everybody loved it. Now we do it three times a year. It’s been great."

Once the superheroes appeared outside the hospital windows, they would play window drawing games like Tic-Tac-Toe, blow bubbles, make drawings, or other activities that would make the children happy.

Kelly VanWingerden, dressed as Spiderman, joined other firefighters from Prince William County to cheer up the kids. While hanging 10 to 12 stories from the ground, she got a request to draw Sonic the Hedgehog on the hospital window. While she isn't much of an artist, she was happy to oblige.

"It looked like a blob with eyes, but he absolutely loved it. He was cracking up," said VanWingerden. "His mom was in the background taking pictures and laughing so hard at my drawing. That was just fun to be able to actually make them smile and laugh when they have this horrible thing happening in their lives."

VanWingerden and other firefighters across the DC region used the visits as practice for their rappelling skills. According to the fire department, public safety departments regularly practice for regional emergency responses utilizing mutual aid agreements.

"We encourage our members to progress their careers by learning new skills, such as technical rescue, paramedicine, hazardous materials removal and law enforcement with the fire marshal’s office," said Bryan Ross, battalion chief for special operations with Prince William County Fire and Rescue. "These children undergo chemotherapy and other surgeries and are usually confined to their rooms. We give them hope and help them fight their illness through that hope."

Jewell praised Prince William County Fire and Rescue for bringing a number of firefighters in costume.

"It’s good to have people doing different characters in different costumes. It’s awesome. It means a lot to have the interaction with the children, their parents and hospital staff on a different level," said Jewell. "I think it’s really important. You get to see how small acts of kindness can really make a huge difference in someone’s day."