France, Paris

Bringing smiles to paediatric burn patients and their families

More than twenty volunteers at Aspen France in Paris gathered on 22 October 2025 and participated in bringing smiles to 100 paediatric burn patients at the Armand Trousseau Hospital in Paris. This Aspen business unit selected two beneficiaries for their 2025 Mandela Day activities with one being a feeder cause for the second.

Hostobox created a gift box concept for clinics, businesses and individuals to lovingly fill with special treats and desperately needed items and to be handed over to bring relief and joy to hospitalised patients and their families.

The mission of the Burns and Smiles charity is to provide comprehensive support to burn patients, guiding them towards resilience and offering them a strong support network despite the scars that they may carry for life.

In collaboration with Burns and Smiles, Aspen France engaged with the Armand Trousseau Public Hospital’s Plastics, Reconstructive, and Burn Surgery Department to bring smiles to 100 of their burn victims. These patients, from newborn to 18 years of age, are cared for in a highly challenging environment with multiple factors influencing limited engagement, and with one being minimal access for sterile purposes.

This multi-pronged collaboration is a fitting initiative considering that there are more than 400 000 burn victims recorded in France annually, with a third of these being children under the age of five years.

Given the importance of maintaining a sterile environment, only four Aspen volunteers were granted access to the Burn Surgery Department at the Hospital. Aspen’s volunteers handed urgency gift boxes directly to families who were forced to admit their children under emergency conditions. These gift boxes contained items that would normally not be packed during an urgent departure from home, such as pacifiers, cuddly toys and toiletries.  To the delight of the patients aged one to four years, a musician was also permitted to entertain them during the distribution. This brought extra joy not only to those suffering burn wounds but also to the families, healthcare workers and staff too.

While this may appear to be a small gesture of care and kindness, it is a highly appreciated one that is deeply meaningful to families and patients experiencing the excruciating trauma of burn wounds.