What is Kate's Kart? 

Katherine Anne Layman, known to family and friends as “Baby Kate,” was born in June 2006.   Shortly after her birth, she was diagnosed with congenital and heart defects.  After enduring multiple medical procedures, including four open heart surgeries, Baby Kate was called Home and peacefully passed away in her mother’s arms at 18 months of age.

One of the things Kate absolutely adored during her hospitals stays was being read to and looking at books.   Since there were many days when Kate could not be held after a surgery, her family would read to her as a way to bond and spend time together. When feeling better, Kate loved looking at interactive books that included touch and feel, lift the flap and books with musical buttons.  Because of Kate’s heart defect, she never learned to walk, talk or crawl.  Books were something she could manipulate on her own. It was one of the few activities she could engage in on her own.  Many times, nurses and other staff were found reading to Kate. Kate loved books.

After Kate’s passing, her family was inspired to do something to encourage other families who were spending time in the hospital.  In honor of Kate, and her love of books, her family decided to start giving away new books to children at their local hospital. Word of the Layman family’s efforts spread quickly and soon more volunteers and additional hospitals expressed interest in supporting their cause.

Books are simply the tool used to encourage and brighten the day of hospitalized children.  Though the simple gift of a book may immediately bring a smile and a level of comfort to the patient, long-lasting effects are seen for both the child and their families. The ultimate goal is to promote literacy and encourage children and their families to read.

Our Mission

Through the gifting of new books, Kate's Kart strives to provide a comforting diversion to hospitalized children and their families, and to foster a love of books, and ultimately literacy, by encouraging children to read and parents to read to their children.

Kate's Kart....

1. Provides school age children the opportunity and resources to continue and to maintain the reading process during absence from formal classroom instruction.
2. Allows a pediatric patient the opportunity to make a choice in an environment where the child has little control over his or her day.
3. Gives Neonatal Intensive Care Unit parents a way to interact with their babies, including those they cannot touch or hold.
4. Encourages all parents of pediatric patients to promote lifelong reading habits for their children while also providing comfort and positive distraction during a difficult and frightening time.
5. Educates parents of newborns that no child is too young to be read to and that reading to a child at any age helps build vocabulary and is a way of bonding. 

Our Karts

Our 42 Karts, in 25 hospitals, across 15 counties in Northeast Indiana are stocked with new books that serve as a comforting diversion to hospitalized children. Our incredible team of volunteers push the Kart 3x each week at hospitals in Fort Wayne, while Karts in outlying counties are stationed in ER's, available to children through nurses and hospital staff. As of 2024, we have given away over 425,000 new books.

Volunteer Opportunities 

There are many reasons people volunteer, whether it's a strong desire to help others, or a well-deserved sense of satisfaction. Volunteering your time and efforts can be personally rewarding and make a difference in the lives of hospitalized children.

As a Kate's Kart volunteer, you and a partner will push a fully-stocked book cart through the hospital, offering free books to pediatric patients to keep and take home. We have volunteers at Parkview, Lutheran, and Dupont hospitals. 

Volunteer Expectations

Every new volunteer will be provided with a Volunteer Handbook which details our history, policies and procedures.  During your shift, you will push the Kart to each designated area within the hospital where you will offer books to pediatric patients.  The Kart can be very heavy, and there is a lot of walking involved, so being in good physical condition is important. You will need to be prepared to briefly explain what Kate's Kart is and our mission; however, many long-term patients will already know who you are.  Specific guidelines are in place regarding distribution of the books and are outlined in the handbook.

Volunteers are scheduled to work on a monthly basis by our Volunteer Schedulers.  The schedule is posted 2-6 weeks in advance on the Kate's Kart website.  We ask for a once-per-month commitment.  You will be paired with another volunteer for your shift, and it will be up to you and your partner to arrange a time/place to meet.  The Kate's Kart Volunteer Schedulers will set the original schedule; however, it is your responsibility to find a replacement if you should be unable to fulfill your assigned shift.  You will have access to a complete contact list of other volunteers who work at the same hospital for your reference.

The amount of time it takes to run the Kart varies depending on which hospital, the time of year, and number of patients.  Dupont Hospital generally takes about 45 minutes. Parkview Regional Medical Center and Lutheran Hospital can take up to 2 hours.

• Lutheran Hospital runs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays
• Parkview Regional Medical Center runs Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays
• Dupont Hospital runs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays

The other hospitals we serve distribute the books via their nurses and staff, and therefore do not require volunteers. You are expected to adhere to each hospital's dress code (basically no jeans, shorts or open-toed shoes),  and will be provided with an apron to wear while running the Kart.