Amount Raised:
$11,345
My Goal:
$10,000
Why do I help raise money for St. Jude Children's Hospital?
December 17, 2019 our youngest son, Graham, was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma after having some lymph nodes surgically removed at our local Mercy Hospital. December 18th, he spent the day at the Springfield St. Jude affiliate clinic inside Mercy Children’s Hospital. He then checked into St. Jude in Memphis, TN on December 19th, the same day as his kindergarten school Christmas party. Graham and our family spent Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Years Eve in the Chili’s Care Center getting his first and second rounds of chemo. He received a total of five rounds of chemo in eight weeks.
Graham was required to stay in Memphis for the duration of his stay. St. Jude provided a two bedroom apartment so his family could all stay together. The hospital also provided food on campus and money for groceries when off campus. All of Graham’s care that was not picked up by insurance was paid for by the hospital, and continues to be for his checkups and any other care related to his diagnosis and treatment. Graham returned home April 2nd, 2020 after enduring the month of March with no immune system due to the total chemo load he received during treatment.
Graham has since rebounded and is a healthy eleven year old boy in the fifth grade. He loves golfing, snow skiing, playing with friends on his VR, fishing, flag football, and basketball! St. Jude has given Graham his health back, which they do for so many kids. He was patient number 53,667. To think of the impact St. Jude has had on the families who have come before Graham, and the patients and families who will come through their doors after Graham is what motivates us to raise funds to help support the efforts at St. Jude. We want to help save every single child who comes through the doors. This September, I’m joining the nationwide movement to honor Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and support those who need us most — the kids of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®.
Can I count on your donation to help me reach my goal?
Families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – so they can focus on helping their child live. Because of our generous donors, St. Jude can provide children cutting-edge treatments not covered by insurance, at no cost to families.
When St. Jude opened in 1962, childhood cancer was largely considered incurable. Since then, St. Jude has helped push the overall survival rate from 20% to more than 80%, and we won't stop until no child dies from cancer. Thank you for supporting me and the lifesaving work happening at St. Jude today.
Let’s cure childhood cancer. Together.
