Starlight Children’s Foundation Announces 2026 Starlight Awards Honorees
LOS ANGELES, August 25, 2026 – The nonprofit Starlight Children’s Foundation today announced the honorees for the 2026 Starlight Awards, its annual recognition program celebrating individuals, hospital teams, brands, and content creators whose work is helping transform the pediatric hospital experience. This year’s honorees span lifetime philanthropic leadership, celebrity ambassadorship, hospital excellence, individual philanthropy, corporate social impact leadership, partnership innovation and a new class of digital creators using their platforms to champion seriously ill kids.
“Congratulations to all the honorees,” said Adam Garone, CEO of Starlight Children’s Foundation. “Each of these individuals and organizations has demonstrated extraordinary commitment in helping support our mission of delivering happiness to seriously ill kids and their families. Through their partnership and generosity, they are helping transform the hospital experience by creating moments of happiness that ease anxiety, build resilience and help young patients better engage in their care. We are deeply grateful for their dedication to making a meaningful difference when it’s needed most.”
2026 Starlight Awards Honorees
Lifetime Achievement Award
Robert Pasin, chief wagon officer, Radio Flyer
Golden Heart Award
Steve Burns, actor and podcaster
Hospital of the Year Award
Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt
Golden Hero Award
Sutter Children’s Center at Sutter Medical Center — Child Life Team
Driscoll Children’s Hospital — Child Life & Therapeutic Arts Team
Jessica Borrell, Head of F1 Communications, TGR Haas F1
Lindsay Bevan, Social Impact & Philanthropy, Insmed Incorporated
the LEGO Group, Consumer and Shopper Engagement Team, Tempe, AZ Office
Rosalie and Harold Brown Charitable Trust
Content Creator of the Year
BlackAppleCreative — Dream Team Award
Sas8Jr — Heart of the Community Award
Hel — Rising Star Award
Excellence in Innovation
Wicked Saints Studios
Recognized as the country’s broadest-reaching nonprofit dedicated to supporting seriously ill children, Starlight delivers play-based programs that bring happiness, comfort, and normalization to kids throughout their healthcare journey—both in hospitals and at home. For more than 40 years, Starlight has partnered with healthcare teams across its nationwide network, providing its donor-funded programs free of charge to help ease the challenges of hospitalization and make the path to healing a little brighter.
According to Garone, Starlight plans to present the honorees, who are available for in-person presentations, with their awards in the coming months.
To learn more about the honorees and the awards, visit starlight.org/awards.