When Jerrika Hinton played a doctor on the popular TV drama Grey’s Anatomy, viewers may not have known how much of the role was inspired by her own life. Her character — who was motivated to go into healthcare as a result of having sickle cell disease — was loosely based on Hinton’s cousin.
When Hinton visited St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital as the guest panelist for the annual St. Jude Gold Luncheon, the inspiration continued as the actress was moved by the hospital’s holistic approach to healthcare.
Panel at the 2018 St. Jude Gold Luncheon with actress Jerrika Hinton
“When I got to see more in depth how St. Jude works, I just walked away going, ‘Why isn’t the whole world like this?’” Hinton said at the luncheon, which raises money for St. Jude while celebrating philanthropic women in Memphis and surrounding communities.
Now in its fourth year, the St. Jude Gold Luncheon has raised nearly $250,000, and is in the process of expanding from a regional to national event. This year’s luncheon honored 16 Memphis women, who raised a collective $65,000 for St. Jude in connection with the event. As the guest speaker, Hinton spoke about why she supports St. Jude.
After spending five years playing a character who had sickle cell disease, Hinton found herself inspired by the way St. Jude treats pediatric catastrophic diseases.
“It moves me so deeply, the holistic approach to what health can look like in these circumstances,” Hinton said. “It’s about the patient’s well-being, but it’s also about the family well-being and your spiritual well-being, and how all of those elements really work together and have an effect on the patient and how the treatment succeeds.”
“When I got to see more in depth how St. Jude works, I just walked away going, ‘Why isn’t the whole world like this?’”
After receiving a tour of the hospital, Hinton’s appreciation of St. Jude was strengthened.
“It’s designed with the patients in mind, and that was immediately evident and striking,” Hinton said. “This is what I want for the whole world.”
Help our families focus on their sick child, not medical bills.
When you donate monthly, your gift means families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food — because all a family should worry about is helping their child live.
Read more inspiring stories
-
My Corner of the World: Åsa Karlström, PhD
Read how Åsa Karlström, a native of Stockholm, Sweden, combines love of nature with meaningful work to create a home away from home in Memphis, Tennessee.
-
Hospital’s growth inspires clinical research associate to share hospital’s history as tour guide
Read how a longtime employee is educating newcomers about the hospital.
-
A Dream Realized: St. Jude employees share connections to hospital’s 57th anniversary
Learn more about the hospital’s origins through two employee stories.
-
St. Jude employees show passion for giving by donating to Blood Donor Center
Learn how employees give back by donating blood to St. Jude patients.
-
Pedaling close to home
Chuck Langlois began managing the St. Jude Bike-A-Thon in the 90s, but when his niece, Kenlie, was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma, the event took on a new meaning.
-
Working at St. Jude is one of my proudest accomplishments
Learn more about the role of Legal Services in hospital operations.
-
Physicist finds meaning in numbers to enhance proton therapy treatment
Find out how medical physicists work with clinicians to ensure the effective delivery of proton therapy treatment.
-
Loving what you do is key to doing your best work
Learn how Sanjay Verma forged a successful medical technologist career.
-
Caregiving has been a lifelong passion for ICU nurse
Learn how Angel Parker made a career from years of caregiving experience.
-
Texas native Maricarmen Windisch adopts a home team in Memphis and St. Jude
Learn how Maricarmen Windisch of Professional Services made Memphis and St. Jude her home.
-
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.
-
Software engineer finds cutting-edge success at St. Jude
Learn how Memphian Clay McLeod stayed home to pursue a cutting-edge software engineering career.
-
Building a career at the intersection of science and technology
Learn how Hongjian Jin’s interest in science and technology spawned a career as a bioinformatics research scientist.
-
Black Panther author Jesse Holland visits St. Jude
Jesse Holland, author of a novel based on the Black Panther, visited St. Jude patients and talked with them about comic books, superheroes and his life story.
-
The road to a cure on two wheels
When Cade was diagnosed with cancer, an entire town rallied to fundraise money for St. Jude, one motorcycle at a time.
