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With the holiday season in full swing and a feeling of gratitude in the air, culinary students from Delcastle Technical High School donated baked goods to support ChristianaCare caregivers who have done so much good throughout 21 months of battling COVID-19. During the past week, including a marathon session overnight Friday into Saturday, the students baked more than 10,000 cookies as part of the school’s annual Bake the Night Away. The students then delivered to multiple ChristianaCare campuses, including Wilmington Hospital, Christiana Hospital and Union Hospital, on Friday and Monday. “We’re trying to bring a little joy. It is a hard time,” said Toni Barber, a junior at Delcastle. “They help us, so we can help them a little and give them a treat.” Delcastle students and volunteers helped decorate each cookie box with a message reading: Thank you for your service to our community by keeping us safe! This year’s Bake the Night Away is dedicated to the caregivers of ChristianaCare during the pandemic. These cookies were produced by the team in the Culinary Arts program and friends at Delcastle Technical High School with gratitude for your service to our state. This is the first time the cookies from Bake the Night Away have gone to health care workers. The donation is particularly meaningful to caregivers as it comes during yet another challenging moment in the pandemic, as COVID-19 cases and hospital volumes are surging dramatically in the community. “The nursing staff is always grateful for anything the community does for us,” said Melva Lane, MBA, BSN, RN-BC, NE-BC, Nurse Manager 4 West Wilmington Hospital. “This is a challenging time. Every day we’re in the hospital saving lives. The capacity is so high on every unit. But a gift like this brightens our day. Thank you, to the students and friends of Delcastle High!” Lane added that the greatest gift that the community could give is help in ending the pandemic. “We are seeing another significant surge of COVID patients at the same time that so many other people also need hospital care. We need more people to get vaccinated so that we can reduce the spread and keep people healthy and out of the hospital. That’s our greatest wish,” she said. ChristianaCare Invites the Community to Support Health Care Workers and Community Health Needs “Philanthropy never tasted so good,” said ChristianaCare Vice President of Development Dia Williams Adams. “We are humbled by the compassion and generosity of Delcastle Technical High School and our other community partners. All it takes is one act of kindness to inspire others to follow—that’s the power of philanthropy.” She also highlighted there are many ways members of the community can give during this holiday season to support health care workers as the pandemic continues to create challenges. “We are working tirelessly to provide COVID care and vaccination and meet other patient needs related to diabetes, cancer, heart health and so much more. The generosity of people in the community helps us to make a difference for everyone we serve—for the love of health!” To learn more about the power of philanthropy and how you can support ChristianaCare, please visit: https://christianacare.org/donors/ Sponsors of Bake the Night Away include: Chick-Fil-A, Sysco, Dom’s NY Style Pizzeria