Trinity's Kid Companions Group Visit Young Friends at Local Orphanage

Earlier this month, Kid Companions visited their young friends at the St. Benedict Children's Home on St. Vincent. Each trip has a theme, with carnivals, arts and crafts, and field day games being popular choices among students and residents alike. Today's introduced a new and exciting variable for the kids: a well-stocked and adaptability-inclusive water balloon fight.

Trinity student and Kid Companions president Therese Clara Bilenga noted on the day, “Activities like these allow the kids to be kids. Beyond organizing the event, we also join them on their terms on their turf.  From a clinical perspective, it's a great way to develop that pediatric patient interaction tool kit. It can make a wide array of circumstances much more approachable for us. Arguably more importantly though, being around these kids reminds us that life is fun and as doctors, our goal is to provide earnest care, not just address a problem. We're all trying to carry this positive spirit in our future practice.”

The Kid Companions is an incredible example of Trinity students organizing activities to enrich themselves and give back to the community of St. Vincent.

The group's goals center around providing time, attention, and companionship for the young residents of two children's homes on St. Vincent, one for children with special needs, and another for children with HIV and AIDS. In donating their material, labor, love, and their time to their young friends, Trinity students, in turn, continue to develop patient interaction skills and keep empathy, adaptability, and a person-first approach to medicine at top of minds.

This is the first major visit of the year, with another already planned for March.