Blue Jackets in the giving spirit this holiday season

The irony is that during a pandemic, perhaps a time where lending a hand in the community is most crucial, it's almost most difficult to do so.
That hasn't stopped members of the Blue Jackets community from trying to do so. That includes a visit to the Ronald McDonald House this past weekend by members of the Lady Jackets, who also brought along some goodies for the trip.
Presents delivered to those at the nonprofit family and children's charity, which is dedicated to supporting families with sick children in their time of need, included some Jet's Pizza, a board game and a cookie decorating kit to help pass the time.

A description of a number of efforts under way by members of the Blue Jackets family follows.
Avondale Adopt-A-School
The Blue Jackets have had a long affiliation with Avondale Elementary School, a Columbus city school located in Franklinton on the city's west side.
A typical year would include a pen pals program between the school's fourth and fifth graders and Blue Jackets staffers, a visit to Nationwide Arena on Halloween for trick-or-treat, and the chance to take part in other educational activities as the year went on as well as a year-end party.
The pandemic has unfortunately put many of those efforts on the shelf for the year, especially since all students in Columbus City Schools are engaging in remote learning.
"It's been pretty challenging," said April Knight, the principal at Avondale.
With that in mind, the Blue Jackets have still tried to keep the relationship going through a variety of initiatives. Before the start of the season, the organization delivered CBJ-branded dry erase boards to the school to give to kids, which teachers had identified as a specific need for remote learning.
"(The kids) can be on their Zoom call with the teachers and write down their answers on things and he or she can do a quick check," Knight said. "That was a tremendous gift that the Blue Jackets did for us, and the kids love it. That was a nice way to get (the school year) started for the kids.
"The Blue Jackets have always come through for us."
This holiday season, a donation of $2,000 worth of gift cards has also been delivered to assist Avondale families during the holidays, while members of the team's hockey operations department and the Lady Jackets have adopted a number of families at the school to provide presents this holiday season.
In addition, Blue Jackets forward Riley Nash taped a video of gratitude for the teachers at the school.
"I think that video was so impactful to the staff," Knight said. "So much of the focus is always on the kids, but as educators we have to really make sure that we're taking care of ourselves first. Just having somebody who recognized that this was a difficult time, with so many of our teachers having their own families at home and they're juggling that while trying to teach every day. I think that was a very important message that they got from the Blue Jackets organization."
The Blue Jackets also have provided no-cost education resources for literacy, STEM and academic achievement and hockey-themed activity worksheets provided to teachers to support remote learning efforts to Avondale. These resources are available to schools and families around the area; for more information, visit
BlueJackets.com/education
.
Foligno, Atkinson help Nationwide Children's
The Blue Jackets also have a longstanding relationship with Nationwide Children's Hospital, one of the nation's premier facilities to help sick kids get the care they need.
Although this year's pandemic canceled the team's annual visit during Hockey Fights Cancer Month in November, Blue Jackets veterans Nick Foligno and Cam Atkinson have tried to deliver a little holiday cheer.
Both made a recent appearance at the hospital, with Atkinson donating toys to the kids at the facility. Foligno, meanwhile, delivered copies of "Dear Heart: A Letter to My Special Heart,"
the children's book written by Nick's wife Janelle
and inspired by their daughter Milana.
Atkinson, a longtime supporter of first responder and military charities, is also adopting a number of military families for the holiday season and recently met with the Ohio Military Kids organization as part of a virtual meet and greet.
Spreading cheer
- Rick Nash has donated 15 large screen televisions to the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department to donate to families. - Boone Jenner has donated personalized jerseys and hats and took part in a video call with patients at Nationwide Children's Hospital. - The Columbus Blue Jackets Foundation has teamed with club corporate partners Vorys, Energy Transfer, Delta Dental and ADS, along with Foundation grant recipients the Columbus Metropolitan Library, Community Shelter Board, Columbus Parks and Recreation Foundation and LSS Choices for Victims of Domestic Violence, for a Spirit of Giving campaign in the month of December. More than $55,000 was raised to donate to help vulnerable populations that have been greatly impacted by COVID-19.