FREEHOLD, NJ — A local teenager has been named as a national finalist for the Congressional Medal of Honor Society’s Youth Service Award.
Giuliana Demma, a 15-year-old Freehold resident, was selected as a finalist based on her work with G’s Giving Gowns, a nonprofit organization that she founded in 2021, which aims to bring comfort and dignity to pediatric cancer patients through custom, brightly-colored hospital gowns.
The award recognizes young Americans who demonstrate the values of the Medal of Honor – courage, sacrifice, commitment, integrity, citizenship and selfless service.
“It’s a really big honor to be recognized for my work,” Demma told Patch. “I dedicate this award to all the brave cancer warriors who continue to inspire me every day.”
Currently a sophomore at the Ranney School in Tinton Falls, Demma was inspired to start G’s Giving Gowns after seeing her cousin fight cancer at just nine months old.
As her cousin was going through the treatment process, Demma noticed that she always had to wear an oversized green hospital gown.
After learning how to sew at fashion camp, she set out to change that.
“I wanted to do something for kids like her who are fighting for their lives in the hospital,” she said. “I wanted to do something to help those kids feel more like kids and not just patients.”
From there, the concept for G’s Giving Gowns was born.
The youth-led organization replaces standard hospital wear with custom hospital gowns and port-access shirts that aim to simplify medical care while bringing “comfort, confidence, and a little more joy” to every patient’s journey.
Since starting the nonprofit in 2021, Demma says the organization has donated to 47 states and nine countries, donated hundreds of port shirts, thousands of custom hospital gowns and impacted over 5,000 pediatric patients worldwide.
“The community is always very supportive,” Demma said of her work with the nonprofit. “They’re always willing to help. We have kids who come to workshops we host and seniors from local 55-and-over communities.”
To date, Demma says G’s Giving Gowns has held over 150 workshops and has over 500 volunteers who work with them.
Going forward, she hopes to switch to recycled fabrics for her products and focus on eliminating microplastics in efforts to reduce medical waste.
These efforts could be achieved through new program ideas she’s currently developing – one of which would allow customers to send their custom gowns back to the nonprofit once they’re done using them and have that fabric be recycled into a bag for them or for another child in need.
“We do hospital gowns, port shirts, pillow cases, holiday gift bags and more,” Demma said. “It’s all about things in fun, bright patterns to make a difference and bring a smile to someone’s face.”
To learn more about G’s Giving Gowns, you can visit their website.
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Freehold, NJ Patch
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