Desert Trails Elementary School sixth-grader Jordan believes kids are sick not only during the holidays and should be remembered all year long.
He and his school classmates collected more than 400 stuffed animals. Jordan and his father donated most of them to Scottsdale Healthcare and a few to other hospitals.
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"Seeing kids pick up a stuffed animal and knowing that I put a smile on their face feels good," Jordan said.
He went to his principal, let her know what he was planning to do and asked for permission to continue his project at school.
"Jordan's heart goes out to these children, to whom he feels get forgotten when the holidays are gone," said Kris Lee, principal at Desert Trails Elementary.
The soft-spoken Jordan was inspired to help others after he participated in an after-school event helping underprivileged kids. He wanted to do more but was too young for other volunteer groups.
So with help from his parents, he came up with the idea to deliver stuffed animals to children in hospitals around the Valley.
His father, Adam Tarr, strongly believed in his son's goodwill idea and turned it into a non-profit organization called Jordan's Jungle. If anything, Adam hopes to inspire other kids to help out in their community.
"If they can't get up to play, they will always have their own special friend to hold in the hospital bed," said Jordan, adding that it is important to have a special stuffed animal within reach when parents or nurses are not around.
"I have had patients call me up after discharge and tell me about how much it meant to them to have a visitor like Jordan while they were sick," said Shannon Hicks, child life coordinator for Scottsdale Healthcare. "They often ask me if they can come back and do the same once they are well."
Jordan is counting on more donations so he can reach other hospitals and put more smiles on kid's faces.