Students use drawings, design to create well wishes for pediatric patients

Students at Forbes Road Career Technology Center were quite busy making get-well cards for patients at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh this spring.

The idea came from multimedia design instructor Philip Greene, who teaches grades 10-12 at the Monroeville vo-tech school.

“I wanted to make multimedia design relevant for the students with a community impact component,” Greene said. “This aligns with our 30 Tips of Dignity and Respect initiative, one of which is ‘Lend a Hand.’ ”

Greene was motivated by his mentor, computer networking and security instructor George Karnbauer. Karnbauer and his students participate in community service projects, such as teaching senior citizens how to navigate today’s computer world.

“We wanted to show the students how design and art can make a real difference,” said Greene, a 1977 graduate of Penn Hills.

“(This) initiative reflects our ongoing commitment to community engagement and experiential learning,” added Nick Falcon, assistant director and Title IX coordinator for the technology center.

Greene reached out to faculty at Trinity Christian School in Forest Hills and Imani Christian Academy in East Hills. Children in grades 2-5 were invited to participate.

“We believed that the purity of the children’s desire to help or encourage other children would come out in the imagery and connect with the children and their families going through traumatic challenges,” Greene said.

Art teacher Marci Mason said Trinity has a very active art program. For this project, students were asked to draw colorful images that would represent “happiness and hope” — and the students were eager to help.

“The lower elementary grades all participated in this project as a way to let the young patients experiencing illness know we are praying for them and sending good wishes,” Mason said. “Everyone loves to get cards in the mail, especially when it brings good thoughts.”

Forbes Road CTC multimedia students received more than 50 drawings; they narrowed the images down to 15. Card production was completed by students in the advertising and design program.

Two of the high schoolers who participated in the assignment were Vincent Rossetti and Amara Perez. Both students graduated this year and will attend college in the fall — Rossetti is going to Point Park University for photography, and Perez will attend Carlow University for child psychology.

“I truly enjoyed seeing all the amazing artwork created by the children and felt honored to help with such a wonderful project,” Perez said.

Perez, who was the 2025 multimedia student of the year, said her role involved scanning and refining the artwork and resizing it for the final layout.

“Contributing to this project showed me how creativity can bring people together and how powerful it is to impact the community with design,” she said. “Being part of something that uplifts young voices through art reminded me why design matters and how it can leave a lasting impression far beyond the canvas.”

On Aug. 6, Greene and Rossetti delivered the get-well cards to UPMC Children’s Hospital in the hopes of encouraging pediatric patients.

“The poster-style artwork was made available to hospital visitors at no cost, providing a thoughtful means of offering encouragement to patients in accordance with hospital policy,” Falcon said.

UPMC Children’s Hospital offered a designated location for card delivery, since direct distribution to patients is restricted.

“I think it’s great that these students did something special for people that they don’t even know,” said child life specialist of hematology/oncology Michael Shulock.

The get-well cards will be placed in two of the triage rooms for patients.

“Hopefully, the cards can be uplifting for patients that may be having a bad day,” Shulock said.

As for students at Trinity, Mason said they are going to continue creating cards, possibly for the school’s Christmas shop, and hope to continue their relationship with Greene and the Forbes Road CTC students.