This season, we are proud to introduce 15-year-old Joshua Conger as our 21st Duck.
At a young age, Joshua was diagnosed with several complex medical conditions, including epilepsy, neurological pain syndrome and autism. Since birth, he has endured countless hospital stays, procedures and treatments.
In 2019, Joshua began receiving care through the GI team at Rady Children’s Hospital, where he met Shanna, a Child Life Specialist. The two formed a special friendship, and Shanna would give Joshua a small toy after his visits, as she did for many pediatric patients.
When Joshua noticed Shanna’s toy supply running low, he asked his mother to forgo his own toy and turned to social media to request donations for other children. What began as a simple act of kindness quickly grew into a community movement.
Within one month, 600 toys were collected and delivered to Shanna at the Thompson Autism and Neurodevelopmental Center at CHOC. Later that year, with support from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Access to Care Bureau and LASD Motorsports, Joshua helped deliver 1,800 toys during the holiday season.
As support grew, so did the mission. Today, Joshua’s nonprofit, Joshua’s Joyful Giving, serves fourteen clinics and departments within Rady Children’s Hospital and provides toys, sensory-friendly autism backpacks, bedside activity bags, holiday buckets and family support programs.
In 2025, Joshua’s Joyful Giving launched an “Adopt a Local Family” initiative to support families facing cancer, surgeries and serious medical conditions. That same year, the community lost Shanna following her battle with cancer, but her influence continues to inspire the organization’s work.
Over the past six years, Joshua and his team have distributed more than 10,000 toys, 3,000 bedside bags and 300 autism backpacks. Despite his own medical challenges, Joshua continues to turn personal adversity into hope and compassion for thousands of children and families.
