Volunteer Spotlight: Kayla Schad – District Sales Coordinator, AFLAC

A familiar face in the volunteer and philanthropy scene around Rapid City, Kayla Schad, District Sales Coordinator with Aflac, has a long history of giving back to her community. However, for the last decade or so, her efforts have been inspired by the experience of a close family member at Rapid City Hospital and the impression it left on both Kayla and her extended family.

“Twelve years ago my oldest brother had premature fraternal twins at Rapid City Hospital. They were each around three pounds, two ounces to three pounds, six ounces,” Kayla said.

Her niece and nephew were in Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) for about 60 days. It was an emotional experience for Kayla and her brother’s family. As the twins made their full recovery, Kayla took notice of all the different technology in the NICU — incubators, ventilators, and monitors — all critical in supporting the infants’ health and recovery.

“That department is hands down incredible. But, I don’t think people realize how much money it costs for those different items. It opened my eyes and that’s really what got me involved, just seeing the impact firsthand,” she said.

Fortunately, it wasn’t long before a career opportunity provided Kayla with a place to focus her efforts. She joined Aflac in 2016, the same year that the insurance company began their partnership with Children’s Miracle Network (CMN). In her role, Kayla is out in the community daily, meeting with people across the Black Hills. She hears stories of how Monument Health has impacted individuals going through a cancer diagnosis, or maybe they have a child in the NICU or that is recovering from a severe accident.

“It’s one of those things that you never think it’s going to be you or a family member,” she said. “So any way that I can help, I want to make a difference.”

Although Aflac has a national connection to CMN, that doesn’t always translate into local support. To explore how Aflac could make a meaningful impact in the Black Hills, Kayla reached out to Monument Health Foundation’s CMN Program Director, Shawn Powers.

Shawn first connected Kayla with CMN as a phone bank volunteer during the annual Radiothon event, where she assisted in answering calls from donors. As the event progressed, however, it became clear that call volume was lower than expected. Undeterred, Kayla and her team took it upon themselves to step up their efforts, reaching out to local businesses and tapping into their personal networks for support. “Their proactive approach not only turned the situation around but exceeded our expectations in ways we hadn’t anticipated,” said Shawn.

Although Kayla has dedicated many hours to CMN’s Radiothon phone bank and other Foundation activities over the years, one of her most meaningful contributions has been bringing Aflac’s My Special Duck stuffed animals to children in the area and beyond.

Aflac developed the My Special Duck to support children diagnosed with cancer and certain blood disorders. The toy provides comfort and helps children express emotions by acting out different feelings with a small, circular disc that fits into the duck, showing expressions they may struggle to articulate. Each duck also includes toy medical devices—such as syringes, bandages, and an IV bag—allowing children to role-play and become familiar with the treatments they face. Provided free of charge, My Special Duck offers both emotional support and a playful way for children to navigate the challenges of their care.

Shawn generally oversees the distribution of the ducks, but Kayla often takes it a step further, personally hand-delivering them to families or shipping them to children who are traveling or have a local connection to our CMN program.

Born and raised in Rapid City, Kayla attended Stevens High School, then South Dakota State University. In fact, she started volunteering at Rapid City Hospital during college summer breaks. She would pitch in at the admissions desk, directing patients where to go, or deliver flowers and greeting cards to patient rooms.

“I even considered working in health care,” she said. “But I chose a business career and decided to pursue volunteer opportunities instead.”

Recently, the Foundation sought Kayla’s expertise for a focus group on Corporate Partnerships in an effort to figure out how best to invite other corporations to the table and bring about meaningful impact on the health care needs of the community.

“Thinking of the different businesses and corporations here in Rapid, how do you increase awareness and educate people that, if they are in Walmart and are asked to round up, that money is staying local,” Kayla said. “The more networks you can tap into and the amount of people that you can educate, the more that will come from it and the better impact we’ll make in the community.”

Kayla also serves on the board of the local Ronald McDonald House Charities, which recently broke ground on a new house in Rapid City. “I feel like it goes hand-in-hand with Children’s Miracle Network,” she said. “That’s going to be huge for these families, to be able to stay close to the hospital, especially because a lot of them will be from rural communities.”

For Kayla, volunteering has become an instinctive impulse, fed by a deep wellspring of empathy. “Community involvement is something I’ve always been drawn to. It just makes you feel good as an individual, being able to help.”

Story by Kory Lanphear