The Story of LilyPads Housing

In 2015, Charlottesville local, Jen Koym, gave birth to a little girl with a very rare and serious heart defect. Her daughter, Lily, needed open-heart surgery at Boston Children’s Hospital and their family was left scrambling to find housing while Lily was hospitalized far from home. The financial burden of paying for a hotel in Boston was overwhelming and added to the family’s stress. Thankfully, through a hospitality organization, they were placed with a host family during Lily’s three week hospitalization. When they returned home, they wanted to become a host family too, to “pay it forward” and support families going through a difficult time. However, they quickly realized that Charlottesville did not have a similar organization to support families traveling to UVA Children’s Hospital for their child’s care.

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Jen discovered that there was a great need for additional lodging for UVA pediatric families. Families had been sleeping in their cars because there was no housing available to them. Determined to alleviate some of the burden, LilyPads Housing was started–named after Jen’s inspiration: Lily.

LilyPads Housing (LPH) works with a network of volunteer community hosts to provide safe, comfortable housing for families while their children are hospitalized. Many host spaces are a cozy guest room in the host home.  Other host accommodations range from basement suites to donated apartments.  All that is asked of hosts is that they provide families a clean guest room, access to a bathroom, and that they have an open heart.

While the majority of LilyPads Housing guests are placed for relatively short-term stays, one family spent six months with a LPH host while their youngest child was hospitalized. When Poppy Hunt, an incredible one-year with a congenital heart defect needed emergent medical care, her two parents and three-year old sister were placed with one of LPH’s most seasoned hosts. While the family navigated countless unexpected challenges and health scares for many months, they were able to find stability in their housing.

“We felt welcomed with open arms. Our host family was so nice and caring. If we couldn’t be at our actual home, it was the best place to call home. We had all we needed and knew we were supported emotionally as well.” – Jordan Hunt, Poppy’s father

In addition to providing housing for pediatric families, LilyPads Housing offers several other support programs for in-patient pediatric families at UVA.  LilyPads Housing’s Holistic Support Program was designed to meet the physical and emotional needs of their guests while their child is inpatient. LPH partners with community members and businesses to provide families with gift cards for food and transportation, free passes to community children’s activities, and access to services like haircuts, massages, professional photography, and local gyms.  Moreover, LPH is currently launching an in-hospital support program where trained volunteers visit the pediatric units on a regular basis and distribute comfort items to families at no cost.  Examples of these items may include pillowcases, quality toiletry products, warm socks, phone chargers, and ear plugs–anything that could make a family’s hospital stay a bit easier and more comfortable.

All in all, LilyPads Housing strives to give families the ability to focus on what matters most—supporting their children through their medical journey.