Summer is a time of celebration, when many children across the U.S. enjoy an end to the school year and celebrate time off with their families. The kids of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital are no different.
Thanks to the support of our wonderful donors and volunteers, we watched as 16 young St. Jude patients recently celebrated the advent of summer and the next step in their academic careers by graduating from kindergarten in the St. Jude School Program. Dressed in white caps and gowns, our youngest scholars received diplomas in an annual ceremony that is so meaningful to St. Jude families and staff.
These once-in-a-lifetime moments are possible because of extraordinary people like you who support St. Jude year-round. Even during the summer break, our St. Jude supporters never stop. Through your incredible generosity, you truly bring to life a philosophy expressed so well by the late heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali: “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.”
Without the dedication of our volunteers and fundraisers, St. Jude would be unable to provide exceptional care for our patients — or to recognize their achievements in ceremonies like our kindergarten graduation. I was especially delighted to show our appreciation to some of these amazing supporters at the Volunteer Awards Dinner in June. Volunteers like the late Timothy Driscoll Sr., of Torrington, Connecticut, whom we recognized with a Legacy Award for founding the St. Jude Torrington Telethon in 1979 — an event that has raised $1.5 million over the years. His passion for our mission inspired an entire community to support the kids of St. Jude. His family, who accepted the award in his honor, is continuing the telethon that is now a Torrington tradition.
Some of our most devoted supporters are college students, and nearly 200 of them from across the U.S. take time every summer to come to St. Jude for a first-hand look at our lifesaving work and the opportunity to learn about leadership and how to support St. Jude. I look forward every year to welcoming them here as their energy, enthusiasm and commitment are truly remarkable.
Here at St. Jude we are so blessed that people of all ages and from all walks of life support our mission: Finding cures. Saving children.® As you relax and recharge during this summer season, please know how much your continued support means to the kids of St. Jude.
You, too, can make a difference for St. Jude kids.
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Perspective from the courtside
USA Pickleball Association President Jack Thomas knows the good work of USAPA’s designated charity, St. Jude. His grandson was a patient.
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Flipping for St. Jude
Brianna was inspired by a television commercial for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital to lead a Push-up/Pull-up Challenge fundraiser at her school.
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Generations of giving
This multi-generational family is devoted to raising money for St. Jude. Find out the many ways they are giving back.
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Emily's pledge
Former patient Emily is taking a major step in her life, by attending college and pledging to both to Tri Delta and St. Jude.
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Serving aces for St. Jude
Every year a Mississippi tennis tournament honors children who have battled childhood cancer by raising funds for St. Jude."
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Backyard Talent Show
A group of kids is showing the world that fundraising for St. Jude doesn’t have to be left up to the adults through the wildly successful Backyard Talent Show.
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Sickle cell disease education and support help Jayden excel
Jayden's care team at St. Jude is helping him manage and understand his sickle cell disease. Learn more
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Scan-tastic! St. Jude helps Zara succeed
St. Jude child life specialists help patients understand the MRI scanning process to make it easier for them, and some patients are able to stay still enough for scans that anesthesia isn't needed.
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Teen climbs new heights after bone cancer
Doctors at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital were able to save Micah Winkle's leg from bone cancer, but it was up to the teen to discover alternatives to the contact sports he had played before his cancer diagnosis. Find out more.
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Limiting the side effects of treatment: Proton Therapy provides focused radiation
St. Jude has the world’s first proton therapy center dedicated to childhood cancer. Patients come from all over to receive treatment. One such patient is Brianna Gonzales.
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Journey to the Jude: Lyudmila Tsurkan, PhD, Hematology, Kazakhstan
St. Jude lead researcher Lyudmila Tsurkan of Hematology smiles when recalling her childhood in the central Asian nation of Kazakhstan.
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Journey to the Jude: Augustine Ntah, Security, Cameroon
Ntah said his welcoming personality stems from his heritage, of which he is immensely proud. He thinks of St. Jude as an extension of his homeland, the central African country of Cameroon.
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Journey to the Jude: Besian Sejdiu, Structural Biology, Kosovo
Sejdiu is proud to serve an organization that is a locally, nationally and internationally respected driving force in research, pediatrics and employee recruitment.
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Veteran mechanic reflects on fatherhood, St. Jude experiences
Former U.S. Army diesel mechanic Dennis Hart has served four years as a maintenance mechanic at St. Jude and says he loves working here because of the positive atmosphere.
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St. Jude kindergarteners celebrate resilience and recess at 2023 graduation
In the 15th year of kindergarten graduations, St. Jude Imagine Academy by Chili’s kindergarteners were honored as part of a virtual ceremony.