MERIDIAN — Calder Hefferan had his first surgery before he was even born.

Since then, the Meridian toddler has had three surgeries as a result of his spina bifida.

But in his red cape, lined with trains and other “boy stuff,” Calder is a superhero.

Now, his mother, Danya Hefferan, is giving back.

Hefferan is spearheading a benefit this weekend to raise money to provide capes to patients at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh through the Capes 4 Heroes organization.

Capes 4 Heroes is a California-based nonprofit organization that provides personalized superhero capes for children facing terminal illnesses and other life hurdles.

“These kids spend more time in the hospital than on the playground, and that's not how life should be,” Hefferan said.

Hefferan hopes to raise money for at least 150 capes at the Saturday evening event. The capes cost about $30 each.

The benefit, called Corks and Capes, will begin at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Penn Glade Lions Club, 140 Church Road. The admission price includes sponsorship of a cape and food and wine, as well as live music, a souvenir wine glass, an auction, photo booth and sponsorship table.

“This is a really cool, fun night out and you get to help, too,” Hefferan said.

Tickets for the event can be purchased online at www.corksandcapes.eventbrite.com

The money raised will be used to buy capes that will be passed out to young patients at Children's Hospital in March as part of the Capes 4 Heroes East Coast Crusade.

The Meridian mother became aware of the organization shortly after her son's premature birth nearly two years ago.

Hefferan said she and her husband, Zach, know how grueling multiple doctor visits, therapy and surgeries can be. She hopes the benefit will give parents a chance to have fun and relax.

“It's a break from the medical world,” Hefferan said. “We get it, we live in it. It's tough.”

Christine Coury, along with Wendy Cortes, will head up the East Coast Crusade, which will fly into Pittsburgh in March.

During the “crusade” volunteers and representatives from Capes 4 Heroes go into hospitals and Ronald McDonald houses to give capes to patients. The crusade will cover four states and multiple cities from February until mid-April, Coury said.

In all, the organization will give out 1,500-1,700 capes, 150-200 of which are slated for Pittsburgh. The capes are personalized on site by seamstresses who donate their time.

“They love them,” said Hefferan. “They light up when they get them. They wear them around.”

A family member can sign a child up on the website or a sponsor can provide a cape.

Calder was sponsored by a friend Hefferan met on a Facebook site for parents of children with spina bifida.

After Calder received his cape, she began researching the organization, leading her to call the California offices of Capes 4 Heroes to ask if the program could be done in a different location.

“I wanted to make an event because it's a cool concept and they bring more awareness to this side of the world,” she said.

While she envisioned a small event, it “snowballed into a big event.”

More information about Capes 4 Heroes in available at capes4heroes.com.