Get Involved Guideliness
ᰔᩚ Get Involved
Brighten A Heart™ is built on the belief that small acts of kindness can make a big difference, and that everyone has something to offer. Whether you’re an individual, a company, a school, or a group of friends, there are meaningful ways to help us bring comfort care totes, handcrafted flowers, and hand drawn canvases to patients and seniors who may be feeling alone.
We also invite children, families, and classrooms to join in through Brighten A Heart Kids™, our children’s program for hospital friendly art and kindness projects.
We’re in our early launch phase and are carefully building partnerships with hospitals, nursing homes, hospice programs, and community organizations. If one of the ideas below speaks to you, we’d love to hear from you.
ᰔᩚ Guideliness
Before You Begin: Canvas & Card Guidelines
If you’re creating artwork or written messages, please take a moment to review our 6 × 6 Canvas and Card Guidelines. We use 6 × 6 artist grade canvas panels that are non toxic, acid free, and primed with low odor gesso, which helps make them safer for patients and long lasting as keepsakes.
Whenever possible, please use child safe, non toxic, low odor art supplies such as paint markers, markers, crayons, and colored pencils that are clearly labeled non toxic. To support patient comfort and hospital guidelines, please avoid strong chemical smells, spray paints, and glitter.
Thank you for helping us keep every gift hospital friendly, safe, and made with kindness in mind.
ᰔᩚ Guidelines Matter
Why These Guidelines Matter
Our canvas and card guidelines are not just personal preference, they reflect what many hospitals and patient focused programs commonly recommend. Many organizations ask volunteers to avoid “Get well soon” and religious messages, because some patients may be facing serious or long term illness, and we want every note to feel welcoming and supportive for people of all backgrounds and beliefs.
For anyone who would like to read more, here are a few examples:
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This national nonprofit explains that, at the request of hospitals, volunteers should avoid “Get well” and other illness-focused comments and instead write uplifting messages that focus on the child as a whole, not their diagnosis.
https://www.cardsforhospitalizedkids.com/stepsformakingcards.html -
Their guidelines state that cards should be positive and that they prefer no “Get well soon” or religious messages, for the same reasons of sensitivity and inclusivity.
https://www.cardsforbravery.com/about-making-cards -
Montefiore’s Healing Arts Program asks staff making “Care Cards” for patients to avoid messages related to a particular religion or belief system and to avoid messages related to health or illness, noting how sensitive it can be to be unwell in hospital.
https://montefioreeinstein.org/documents/healingarts/greetingcards/Care-Cards-Guidelines-Nov-2016.pdf -
This nonprofit, which serves people with cancer, advises avoiding references to illness, death, or treatments that may be upsetting—underscoring how easily well-meant words can hurt when someone is very ill.
https://kitstoheart.org/pages/guidelines-what-to-avoid-in-gifts-for-cancer-patients -
CAPC summarizes a Mayo Clinic Proceedings article on “never-words”—phrases clinicians should avoid with seriously ill patients because they can cause distress and shut down honest conversation.
https://www.capc.org/blog/never-words-what-not-to-say-to-patients-living-with-serious-illness/ -
This peer-reviewed article introduces the concept of “never-words”—words and phrases that may sound harmless but can actually cause emotional harm to patients facing serious illness, and argues for more thoughtful, compassionate language.
https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196(24)00256-8/fulltext