During her eight short years on this Earth, Sophia Pasquarella, of Bensalem, loved all-things Halloween. The 31st of October was, hands down, her favorite day of the year.
While this date was once filled with joy for her parents, Pete and Kelly, as they helped their little girl don a costume and trick-or-treat, it took on a bittersweet nature after Sophia lost her battle with leukemia on Oct. 31, 2014.
Rather than view Halloween as a time of mourning, Pete quickly brainstormed a way to bring some light to the season and keep Sophia’s passion for the holiday going strong. For the past decade, he and Kelly have been collecting brand new Halloween costumes to donate to the oncology floor at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, as well as families at the Ronald McDonald House.
Once the costumes are collected and sorted, they’re dropped off at CHOP. A makeshift store is set up, allowing patients to browse costumes and choose one of their liking at no cost.
“Most of the kids there live at the hospital, and going to the store to pick out a costume is not easy for families. Pete and his wife Kelly have made it a mission to make sure every kid at the hospital gets to enjoy the holiday,” explained Anthony “Stitch” Picariello, of Warminster, a friend of Pete’s who has been assisting with the initiative over the past few years.
In 2023, more than 1,300 costumes, in addition to candy goody bags, were donated to CHOP, Ronald McDonald House and other hospitals, allowing many kids and families in the region to enjoy some semblance of normalcy in the midst of an otherwise trying time.
As a letter carrier at Bustleton Post Office in Northeast Philadelphia and softball coach at the Lower Southampton Athletic Association, Picariello came up with the idea to place drop boxes for costumes at the post office, 9925 Bustleton Avenue, and the LSAA softball snack stand at Russell Elliot Memorial Park, 150 Buck Road in Feasterville. The latter is open on weekends during softball games.
The deadline to drop off costumes is Oct. 5, which allows time to collect, sort and deliver.
Sophia was diagnosed with leukemia around Memorial Day in 2011. Over the next few years, as she fought her battle, she took to YouTube, where she shared with the world her second-favorite thing: music. A January 2012 video of her singing “Who Says” by Selena Gomez & The Scene garnered nearly 300,000 views, with other inspiring renditions including “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus and “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” by Kelly Clarkson.
This year, in addition to the annual Halloween costume collection, the Pasquarellas hosted a special event at Bensalem High School, where Sophia would’ve graduated from in June. At Sophia’s Senior Tailgate, students enjoyed music, food and activities, all while reflecting on the classmate most of them never got to meet.
Samantha Bambino can be reached at sbambino@newspapermediagroup.com
