“Life is a gift and it offers us the privilege, opportunity and responsibility to give something back by becoming more.” This quote is by Anthony Robbins and has great relevance to the joy Jarrett’s Joy Cart brings to sick children every week. Trin ity just completed its annual Joy Cart collection – with more than 300 toys donated this year. The Joy Cart began with Jarrett Mynear, who was diagnosed with cancer six times from the time he was two years old until the age of 13, when he succumbed to the disease on Oct. 4, 2002. Jarrett’s treatment included chemotherapy, two bone marrow transplants and the amputation of his lower right leg, according to the Jarrett’s Joy Cart official website. Jarrett got the idea of giving out toys to sick children when he was eight years old in Seattle receiving his first bone marrow transplant. He witnessed toys being passed out at the hospital, and with the help of his parents, Jennifer and Doug Mynear, created Jarrett’s Joy Cart on Mar. 23, 1999. The Cart began in Lexington, Ky., at Kentucky Children’s Hospital. Then Jarrett’s aunt and uncle, Margaret and Michael Wagner, a Trinity football coach, brought Jarrett’s Joy Cart to Louisville at Norton Kosair Children’s Hospital Pediatric Oncology Ward in June 2002. Margaret Wagner said Jarrett was their inspiration for doing so, and years later the couple continues to visit every week. Trinity teacher Mr. John Kahl is the longtime coordinator of the drive for Trinity, and his roles include collecting toys, counting toys, assessing and approximating retail value, and storing toys in his room. Kahl is the liaison from the school to the hospital. Margaret Wagner said, “Our son Andrew was Mr. Kahl’s student, and they got on the topic of fundraisers and (Andrew) told him about Jarrett’s Joy Cart. Little by little it grew. One year the football team got involved, and Mr. Kahl has kept it going.” Kahl said, “I had Andy, Jarrett’s cousin, in class. Andy told me about this, and (when) Andy was killed in an automobile accident, I decided to continue the drive in his honor.” Kahl first introduced the drive to his religion class, expanded it to his English class, then got the entire school involved. Trinity is the only school that formally contributes to the drive, according to Kahl. He said, “We are the only school affiliated with Jarrett’s Joy Cart officially. People usually contribute through funding.” There is a large variety of toys brought in for the drive, including, according to Kahl, “anything from dolls, Matchbox cars, Etch-a-Sketches, stuffed animals or card games.” After a drive at Trinity ends, Kahl said, “Michael Wagner picks the (toys) up and puts them in a warehouse.” The toys last an entire year and usually are handed out to youngsters by volunteers at the hospital, but faculty and students from Trinity also volunteer. The toys are always taken to children in two carts, one for girls and one for boys. Trinity teacher Ms. Debbie Walling volunteered to pass out toys for Jarrett’s Joy Cart, and the experience was significant. Her mother died of cancer when Walling was 16 years old. She described her volunteering vividly: “Mr. Kahl, Tyler Krupp and I rode the elevator to the seventh floor for the opportunity to take two Jarrett’s Joy Carts around to the children. The first child, a boy named James, had a large bandage around his head. When he saw the cart, he quickly got off the bed and rounded the edge to peer at the available toys. He immediately chose a soccer ball, thanked us, and clambered back into bed, excited about his new toy. His parents seemed please as well.” Walling also described her experience with a patient named Drew: “She was about six years old. This dear little girl was holding her own bear, named aptly Bear. Drew almost disappeared in the hospital bed. She had blonde hair, huge eyes and the sweetest voice. I noticed her little legs were covered in bruises. As she was unable to get out of bed, we made suggestions and held up various toys. She politely looked at our choices and finally pointed at the cart and said, ‘I want that one.’ We immediately got the right row on the cart, but we couldn’t find the right toy. She tried to help by telling us it was ‘the pink one.’ Most of the toys were packaged in pink. Each time we held up a toy and asked, ‘This one?’, she patiently, in that angelic voice, responded, ‘No,’ and kept pointing at the cart. “After about eight tries, Tyler found the desired toy. Drew’s eyes lit up when we handed her the desired toy. Of course, she said, ‘Thank you.’ As we left, she promised she would take good care of Bear. The entire time, including travel to and from the hospital, was less than two hours. But what a remarkable time it was. The experience was life affirming and life changing.” Kahl’s and Margaret Wagner’s trips to deliver toys have also been meaningful to them. When asked about the children’s reactions, Kahl responded simply, “Joy, and confusion because they don’t know what to pick.” Kahl also said some children either give their toy to their brother or sister or pick out a toy for them. Margaret Wagner concurred, saying, “It brightens their day, and they are always so grateful. We feel blessed to give them a lift in the day.” Wagner went on to say the experience is full circle and feel they get more out of it than the children. To Kahl the drives mean honoring Andy Wagner, and talking about this made him emotional. Margaret Wagner said, “It’s heartwarming. For Mr. Kahl to remember him really touches us and means the world to us.” Kahl went on to say, “It also has to do with giving the children a chance to live a normal life for 10 minutes and to escape what they are experiencing.” Two memories stick out to Kahl: “One kid’s mom worked for Mattel Toy Company and had all these discontinued toys from Mattel, but all the UPS seals had to be cut off from the box. A boy cut off 500 of the seals on the boxes. It was about three garbage bags full of toys. Also, one kid procured 50 toys from his neighborhood. Delivering those toys is something that will always stick with me.” Jarrett’s Joy Cart continues to grow and now takes place in Lexington and Louisville as well as Orlando, Fla., and Seattle. All locations contain Jarrett’s idea of bringing a little sunshine to a child’s day. Margaret and Michael Wagner’s belief in giving back extends to adding waiting rooms at the new Norton Radiology Building, helping nurses with pursuing extended educational projects, and once a month sending dinner to the parents and nurses. Before this year’s drive ended, Kahl was asked about his goal. He said, “No goals. Whatever happens, happens; whatever comes in, one or 100 toys, doesn’t matter; it’s going to make a difference in someone’s life and that’s important.”