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St. Paul Firefighters Host 57th Carnival For Kids In Hospital

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A stay in the hospital is hard enough for an adult, but for kids it can be even scarier.

On Wednesday, however, there were smiles all around at Gillette Children's Speciality Heathcare. St. Paul Firefighter's Local 21 transformed a parking ramp into a carnival, and it's the 57th year they've done it.

Retired St. Paul firefighter Fran Chenoweth has been coming to the carnival since the very first one.

"We had tents around the backyard and the kids went around in the wheelchair," Chenoweth said, describing the first event. "We had a firefighter for each kid."

Firefighter Kate Heckaman says that the tradition was started to fight one of the biggest villains in the hospital -- boredom.

"One of our own firefighters...he had two sons in the hospital back in the day and he wanted to create something fun for the kids to do while they're stuck in the hospital," Heckaman said.

The carnival is for patients and former patients of Gillette Children's Speciality Heathcare, and it has the stuff kids love.

There's face-painting and pony rides. Plinko and golf.

Jake, one of the kids at the carnival Wednesday, was in the midst of a few-days stay at Children's, and he stopped by with his mom. He won several prizes.

Patients who couldn't leave their rooms were winners, too. Miss Minnesota and a few of the firefighters brought the fun to them.

For the kids, the event is all about the fun and prizes. For their parents, it's all about seeing them smile again.

And for the volunteers?

"When you see how the kids are enjoying themselves, some for the first time, it looks like, you can't stay away,' Chenoweth said.

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