Yardley Carnival Raises $11,700 For Charities

YARDLEY, PA — A carnival by a charity started by a Pennsbury High School student raised more than $11,000 this weekend.

The Full Heart Kids Carnival was held in Chester Meadow on Lakeview Drive in Yardley.

Organized by Casey Schaeffer, along with nearly 30 volunteers, the carnival featured appearances by the Chick-Fil-A cow, Trenton Thunder mascot, Boomer, Delilah, the Keona Farm pony, Ms. Marilyn's Kids Music Round and more.

It was sponsored by the Upper Makefield Business Association and Nomad Framing.

Sponsorships and donations at the carnival exceeded Full Heart's goal, totaling more than $11,700. Of that, nearly $9000 will go to three causes — A Soldier's Hands, The Children's Tumor Foundation and an 8th grader battling tumors around her airway and heart.

A Soldier's Hands is a nonprofit providing skin care products for troops deployed overseas on the U.S.S. Reagan, founded by Yardley resident Trish Shallenberger. The Children's Tumor Foundation is dedicated to finding effective treatments for the millions worldwide living with Neurofibromatosis, a genetic disorder causing tumors to grow on the nerves.

Altana Mukabenov is an 8th grader at Charles Boehm Middle School, where Casey Schaeffer previously attended. She is currently on her fifth chemo trial, treatment that has been partially funded by the Children's Tumor Foundation.

Schaeffer was a freshman at Pennsbury High when she created Full Heart in 2015 to empower kids to get involved in their communities. In 2019, she won the Violet Richardson Award from Soroptimist International's Indian Rock chapter.

"Casey is very grateful to all of her sponsors, attendees, and members of the Full Heart crew for making it such a successful event," Full Heart said in a news release.

In just over four years, Full Heart has donated nearly $16,000 to charitable causes. In 2018, Schaeffer created the Full Heart Music Scholarship, awarded annually to the most improved music senior at PHS.

Donations will be accepted through the end of May at this site.

You may check out Full Heart, A Soldier's Hands and The Children's Tumor Foundation online.