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New entertainment options in the form of a Starlight Nintendo Wii Fun Center videogame system and a free DVD rental kiosk will soon be available to patients at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital at NewYork-Presbyterian, thanks to a donation from the tri-state area Starlight Children's Foundation's Pediatric Hospital Support Program.

The Starlight Nintendo Wii Fun Center is a portable unit that includes a flat-panel monitor, DVD player and Nintendo Wii system. These units can roll anywhere in the Hospital, including right up to a child's bedside. The free DVD rental kiosk will allow patients or their parents to borrow from more than 300 child-friendly movies while they are at this Hospital.

"We are grateful to Starlight Starbright for helping to bring smiles to our young patients while they are cared for at our Hospital. Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital is committed to providing the best in entertainment options, from regular visits by celebrities to our new Lion's Den entertainment room," says Toni Millar, director of Child Life at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian.

"Starlight's mission is to help seriously ill children and their families cope with their pain, fear and isolation through entertainment, education and family activities," stated Elaine Siver, executive director of Starlight Children's Foundation of NY*NJ*CT. "This program is designed to aid children services in hospitals such as Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital. We are confident it will help restore some of the happiness that a serious illness takes away and make a child's hospital experience more pleasant and, when possible, more fun."

Over the past 12 years, Starlight's pediatric hospital support program has supported 84 hospitals in the tri-state area with an estimated project value of more than $7.6 million. The programs supported by Starlight have brightened the lives of more than one million hospitalized children.

Starlight Children's Foundation NY*NJ*CT

Starlight Children's Foundation makes a world of difference for seriously ill children and their families. Since 1985, the NY*NJ*CT chapter has been offering hope and a brighter future for seriously ill children. The goal of the Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation is to help these children experience the simple joys of being a child. Each year, Starlight serves over 275,000 critically, chronically, and terminally ill children throughout New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. Some of Starlight's most unique programs include Great Escapes, special outings for children and their families, STARBRIGHT World, a private online community for teens who are living with chronic diseases to connect, Hospital Happenings, including themed parties, toys, and visits from entertainers. For more information on the Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation of NY*NJ*CT, please log on to www.starlight-newyork.org.

Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian

Ranked by U.S.News & World Report as one of the top 10 children's hospitals in the country, Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian offers the best available care in every area of pediatrics — including the most complex neonatal and critical care, and all areas of pediatric subspecialties — in a family-friendly and technologically advanced setting. Building a reputation for more than a century as one of the nation's premier children's hospitals, Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian is affiliated with Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and is Manhattan's only hospital dedicated solely to the care of children and the largest provider of children's health services in the tri-state area with a long-standing commitment to its community. Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian is also a major international referral center, meeting the special needs of children from infancy through adolescence worldwide.