Six-year-old Rolando presses colorful cotton pom-poms onto his Christmas tree and pushes blue paint across the background. He loves volleyball and Minecraft, but on this day at Driscoll Children’s Hospital Rio Grande Valley, he is an artist, lost in brushstrokes and bright color.

Soon, his holiday scene will leave the hospital room and land in mailboxes all across South Texas.

Rolando is one of several young patients whose artwork appears on this year’s Driscoll Children’s Hospital Christmas cards, part of its long-running Project Artwork program.

The cards are more than cute holiday stationery though. They raise money for scholarships that help current and former oncology patients go to college, and they give children in the hospital a chance to feel like kids again.

“It’s one of the service lines that I love most about our volunteer service,” said Lilliam Santana-Llanos, volunteer services manager for Driscoll Children’s Hospital. “It’s nice to see when our volunteers go out, when they get the cart ready to go, and you know, let kids be kids.”

Art provides an outlet

The creativity often starts with Driscoll’s Art Cart, a mobile cart filled with paints, markers and paper that visits patient rooms all year. Children get to choose their colors, sit up a little taller and forget about treatments for a while.

Santana-Llanos, who celebrates her one-year anniversary at Driscoll in December, helps oversee the program at the new hospital in Edinburg. And when it rolled out in the Valley, Santana-Llanos made sure she joined some of the early visits.

“That first time I got to go in and work with the first patient, she was just lying there quietly,” Santana-Llanos said. “The minute we rolled in, at first, she was a little timid, but she sat up and smiled as she’s painting. That smile goes a long way. It lets them forget where they’re at in that moment and lets them just be creative.”

Holiday cards with heart

Each summer, a panel of community judges reviews patient art and selects the designs for the holiday collection. The chosen artwork becomes cards and other items including mugs, shirts and gift bags. Each child receives a framed copy of their piece and a set of items featuring their design.

This is the first year the holiday card collection includes art from both Driscoll’s Corpus Christi and RGV campuses.

“What’s interesting is that the judging was done blindly,” Santana-Llanos explained. “The judges didn’t know where the art was from, but it worked out that we had artwork selected from both locations.”

And this year’s artists bring a mix of stories and styles.

Along with Rolando from San Benito, who used some of his favorite colors to create a festive Christmas tree made of pom-poms, 3-year-old Alaiza of Donna made an angel from cotton clouds and her own handprints. And Kaleb, 9, from Weslaco, created Mary and Jesus from cardstock and glitter.

Aria from Refugio used bright colors for her gingerbread art, while 12-year-old Giovanni of Bishop painted a jolly snowman. Owen, 8, from Rockport, painted a Christmas tree filled with presents, inspired by the excitement of Christmas morning.

Six-year-old Jilianna Rose created a coastal snowman from sand and shells, much like the beaches she knows in Corpus Christi.

For Santana-Llanos, seeing the children’s art transformed into cards will never get old.

“It is very fulfilling, and it’s rewarding to see how something that just started as a blank canvas has come to life,” she said. “They’ll get to see it in the gift shop or online. It’s like, ‘Look at what I’ve done.’ It’s going to touch many, and the impact it has for our patients who will receive the scholarships — that’s just amazing.”

Children helping children

Project Artwork began in 1988 through the Auxiliary to Driscoll Children’s Hospital and has raised more than $200,000 for oncology scholarships. Proceeds from card sales support the Marcia K. Wilcox Memorial Scholarship and other patient and family programs.

“We want to continue to impact the patient as they’re here,” Santana-Llanos said. “When our volunteers go in, they’re bringing that smile to a child. They’re letting them be kids and not think about what’s going on in the four walls of a hospital room. At the same time, we’re also impacting the lives of former oncology patients who are now in a new chapter of their lives.”

Holiday cards designed by Driscoll patients are available now at the Carousel Gift Shop in Corpus Christi, at Driscoll Children’s Hospital Rio Grande Valley and online through the hospital’s gift shop. Cards cost $1.50 each, and assorted packs, shirts, mugs and gift bags are also available. Many local businesses buy cards in bulk and add personalized messages inside.

For little Rolando — whose bright Christmas tree helps lead this year’s collection — the project is more than an art activity. It is part of his own journey at Driscoll, where volunteers and caregivers have supported him through every visit.

Someday, he hopes to become a teacher or even a doctor himself, helping others the way Driscoll has helped him.

Send a message of hope this holiday season with the purchase of Christmas cards, shirts or other items from Driscoll Children’s online gift shop or at hospital locations, or sponsor a card design by emailing [email protected].