G.O.T. Toyota Donates $20,000 to the Children’s Hospital of Orange County

Oct. 20, 2008 - PRLog -- The Children’s Hospital of Orange County sees more than 70,000 patients per year, and for many of these children, the hospital may as well be called “home”. With a staff of over 1,000 physicians and nurses, and operating costs of over forty million dollars annually, CHOC relies heavily on third party funding for operations.

In 2006, with the influx of extended-stay patients, CHOC introduced “Radio Lollipop”, a fully-equipped radio station in the hospital’s main lobby, and G.O.T. Toyota (Glendale or Tustin Toyota) jumped on board to make the ambitious project a reality. The radio station is now operated and maintained by hospital staff and volunteers, and allows children staying at the hospital to be “on the air” within CHOC’s walls. This year marked the second anniversary for Radio Lollipop.

Because equipment and maintenance for the studio facility mean high costs to the hospital, Los Angeles-based KIIS FM, along with its morning radio personality, Ryan Seacrest, again hosted a live, on-air fundraiser for Radio Lollipop on September 16, 2008. Seacrest’s broadcast this year began at five in the morning, and the fundraising continued all day on KIIS FM, broadcasting live from the fully-equipped Radio Lollipop studio inside the hospital.

G.O.T. Toyota, a long time sponsor of KIIS FM and Seacrest’s morning show, received news of the fundraiser, and G.O.T. Toyota President R.J. Romero visited the hospital to kick off the fundraising with a ten thousand dollar donation. As more listeners began donating, Romero announced that he would agree to match all listener donations up to another ten thousand dollars. Thousands of donations poured in via text messaging, and G.O.T. Toyota’s initial contribution was nearly tripled by the end of the day.

It was an emotional time for all involved. Radio personalities visited children in bed who were unable to leave their rooms to watch the concerts and broadcasting on the hospital floor. Celebrities came to interact, perform music, and offer smiles to children who, despite their circumstances, always smiled back. Says Seacrest: “I’ve witnessed first hand the incredible work CHOC has done for children in our community, and I’m committed to making sure Radio Lollipop becomes a reality.”

G.O.T. Toyota and KIIS FM wish to thank the many individuals who contributed to Radio Lollipop this year. The Children’s Hospital of Orange County and its in-house Radio Lollipop studio will continue to operate for thousands of children each year.

For more information, or to view video of the event, please visit www.GOTToyota.com.

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