The Mary Moon Foundation to Hold 8th Annual Family-Fun Event at Nickelodeon Universe on Saturday, March 9, 2019

Shoot for the Moon – Saturday, March 9, 2019!

Apple Valley, MN - The Mary Moon Foundation is excited to announce its 8th Annual Family-Fun Event to be held at Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America on Saturday, March 9, 2019! Join the foundation for their fundraising event to help raise funds to support the Crescent Cove Respite & Hospice Home for Kids in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota’s first residential respite and hospice home dedicated solely to the specific needs of children and young adults.

After an Apple Valley couple’s 3-year-old daughter died in 2009 from cancer, an all-volunteer foundation established in Mary O’Keefe’s name has so-far raised $170,000 to help support families with hospitalized children.

Local residents can give the foundation a financial boost by taking a spin on a roller coaster or bidding on silent auction items during the Mary Moon Foundation’s Shoot for the Moon event Saturday, March 9, at the Mall of America’s Nickelodeon Universe.

Proceeds from the event will support Crescent Cove Respite & Hospice Home for Kids in Brooklyn Center, the first residential respite and hospice home in the Midwest that is dedicated solely to the specific needs of children and young adults.

Each year, approximately 700 children in Minnesota are diagnosed with an illness expected to shorten their life. While 4,700 hospice homes exist for adults in the U.S., Crescent Cove is just the third facility of its kind in the country.

Crescent Cove provides families who care for children with life-threatening illness a home away from home for short breaks of rest or end-of-life care. The new home has served over 50 families since it opened last May at no cost.

Specialized nursing professionals and therapists care for children and young adults, ages 0-21, staying at the home with round-the-clock pediatric palliative care. Children visit for a short break, staying two to five nights on average, or families use the home as a sacred place at the end of life.

The remodeled facility, which sits on the north end of Twin Lakes, features six child-friendly bedrooms, a family suite, an interactive mural, space to play, a spa bathroom, a fireplace area and a music room.

“Our families tell us Crescent Cove is a sanctuary for their child,” Katie Lindenfelser, the founder of Crescent Cove, told hometownsource.com. “It’s a place that feels like a second home; a place where their family is embraced, celebrated and assured.”

“This kind of home and model has not existed and allows families a chance to breathe and be supported on their road of caring for a child needing 24/7 care,” Lindenfelser said.

In order to provide services to families at no cost, Crescent Cove is dependent on donations and fundraising efforts like the Shoot for the Moon event.

Peter and Christine O’Keefe, founders of the Mary Moon Foundation, know all too well the importance of pediatric end-of-life care.

They lost their daughter, Mary, to neuroblastoma, a cancer that occurs mostly in infants and toddlers, at the age of 3.

Mary’s final days were spent in a hospital, surrounded by life-saving equipment and medicines that were of no use to her.

“Through our experience there is never enough support for families with children with severe illness,” Peter O’Keefe said. “Furthermore, there are many families that don’t have any resources to support them through the physical, emotional, and financial hardships imposed on them when their child has a life-threatening illness.”

While hospitals provide critical acute care and treatment for their patients, they don’t provide a residential setting for end-of-life care.

“Pediatric end-of-life needs are unique and require different needs than adult hospice and respite care,” said Christine O’Keefe, a longtime nurse in the Birth Place at Fairview Southdale Hospital. “Mary still wanted to play, even on the day she passed away. Children have this innate need to learn and play even through sickness and failing health.”

Mary loved participating in arts and crafts and a variety of other activities while she spent a large portion of her final year in the hospital fighting cancer.

The Mary Moon Foundation’s mission is to help hospitalized children enjoy life, learn and grow as much as every child should. Fundraising events also finance art supplies, toys and games for the University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital.

It is not by coincidence that the Mary Moon Foundation selected Nickelodeon Universe for their annual event. The park has special meaning to Mary’s family.

“Mary visited Nickelodeon Universe a few times in her short life. Her last visit was just 12 days before she died,” Peter O’Keefe said. “During that visit she rode the log chute several times – it was her favorite. We love having our event at a location that has memories for us with Mary.”

The March 9 event marks the eighth annual charity event for families hosted by the Mary Moon Foundation.

The organization has also held two benefit concerts to raise funds for hospitalized children.

In addition to the organization’s financial commitment to Crescent Cove, the Mary Moon Foundation has established a $115,000 and growing endowment fund for Child-Family Life Services at University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital.

Shoot for the Moon features discounted all-day admission to Nickelodeon Universe, entertainment, and a silent auction.

Proceeds from the event will be donated to Crescent Cove and Child-Family Life Services at University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital.

Tickets can be purchased at www.marymoonfoundation.org.

Pricing

- $20 event-day tickets (retail is $36+) for the first 800 tickets sold, $30 per rider after

- $30 any-day tickets are also available; use any day of the year, no expiration

This year’s event will feature:

- All-day Nickelodeon Universe® pass with unlimited rides
- Exclusive park access from 8-10 am
-- Short lines! Come early!
-- Ropes course free during this time
- Silent Auction (80+ items), ending early afternoon
-- Tickets not needed to participate in auction
- Fun activities and appearances soon to be announced!

Buy Raffle Tickets for a DJI Mavic Air Drone – need not be present to win.

Share the Event Flyer with your friends!

Sign up here to be a volunteer for this year’s event!

2019 Event Sponsors
OBGYN West
Dawn Seepersaud, Re/Max Advantage Plus
Home Field Advantage Team

About Nickelodeon Universe:

Located in the center of Mall of America®, Nickelodeon Universe features seven acres of unique entertainment, including 27 rides and attractions for guests of all ages and courage levels. Themed after the No. 1 entertainment brand for kids, Nickelodeon Universe offers Nickelodeon character meet and greets, spine-tingling rides, the longest indoor zipline in North America and unique retail shops and dining options. For more information visit www.nickelodeonuniverse.com.

About The Mary Moon Foundation:

The Mary Moon Foundation is a non-profit organization based in Apple Valley, MN.

The Mary Moon Foundation was founded in loving memory of Mary Jacqueline O’Keefe, nicknamed “Moon.” Mary loved participating in arts and crafts and a variety of games and other activities while she spent a large portion of her final year in the hospital fighting neuroblastoma. The organization's mission is to conduct fundraising events to help finance art supplies, toys and games for critically ill children and their families by providing hospitals and children’s hospice resources to help children enjoy life as much as every child should.

On November 9th, 2016 the foundation celebrated its $100,000 milestone with the University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital.

Please visit The Mary Moon Foundation, marymoonfoundation.org and like The Mary Moon Foundation on Facebook, facebook.com/MaryMoonFoundation to learn more about Mary and her parents’ goals with the new foundation.

Originally published: Wednesday, February 13, 2019.