Spring Valley woman helps kids get through treatment with goodies

PERU – Children brought to the Illinois Valley Community Hospital urgent walk-in clinic are receiving “busy bags” to help them pass the time while waiting for treatment. Sue Manning of Spring Valley, has already been putting bags together bags for kids at the emergency department and surgery units. This month, she added the CareToday walk-in clinic to her agenda. Each bag contains an age-appropriate activity book, a book to read, a book mark and crayons. The bags were originally a project of the local Kiwanis Club. After the club disbanded, Manning decided to continue the program on her own in memory of her daughter, Lauren Dimond, who died in a traffic accident in 2016. Manning pays for the materials in the bags out of her own pocket.