There are a lot of wonderful ways my life has changed as a direct result of joining my sorority. I’ve met some of my very best friends, I’ve explored places I never would have otherwise, and I’ve been lucky enough to have a friend next to me for the best times of my life, and a friend next to me to get me through the worst.
And who can argue with a kitchen open 24/7 when you need that late night study snack? When I rushed, I knew all of these things; great girls, best friends, new adventures, were coming my way. What I didn’t know was that in the three years I’ve spent in my sorority I would fall absolutely in love with our philanthropy, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
For those of you that don’t know what St. Jude is, it’s a children’s treatment and research hospital whose mission is to end childhood cancer for good. St Jude takes about $2 million to operate daily, and 75% of that is completely public contributions, which is why I want to spread awareness. A place and cause that has grown near and dear to my heart, St. Jude is unlike anything I’ve ever heard of before, and I want to share that with you. Take a minute to read three incredible facts about St Jude that many people don't know:
1. Families Never Receive A Bill
St Jude is an incredible place because the parents of children treated at St Jude will never receive a bill. And I don’t just mean a hospital bill. No matter where the family is coming from, they will not pay for a plane ticket, they will not pay for housing, they will not pay for a single thing. At St Jude, they believe that the only struggle parents should have to deal with is getting their child better, not the money. St Jude was founded because a man named Danny Thomas dreamt of “a hospital that will treat children regardless of race, color, creed or their family's ability to pay”. That is something that they have gone above and beyond to achieve.
2. It's Not Like a Normal Hospital
St Jude is an incredible place because they’ve stripped their facilities of the stigmas that make children fearful of hospitals. Younger patients don’t sit in wheelchairs, they’re pulled in red wagons. And the older kids? They get a tricycle to go from place to place. St Jude pumps pleasant scents through their hallways so that “hospital smell” isn’t there. St Jude throws “No Mo’ Chemo!” parties for every child who finishes their last round of chemotherapy; party hat, confetti, balloons, and music all included, of course.
3. The Numbers Just Speak for Themselves
St Jude is an incredible place because since opening in 1962, their survival rates have skyrocketed from 20% to 80%. Think for a moment: those aren’t just numbers. Those are kids who get to grow up. Kids who get to go on field trips, and get to take Calculus, and get to go to Prom, and one day maybe even go to Medical School. St Jude has been doing the unthinkable for nearly half a century, and they’re not even close to thinking about being done.
St Jude is an incredible place because it is filled with incredible people. From the kids, to the doctors, to the families and parents, to the nurses, to the researches. Every person at St Jude is defying the odds and pushing the boundaries because they believe that there is more. And they've proved to the world that there is more, the impossible is possible, and they are achieving it. The more support St Jude has, the closer they get to their goal of ending childhood cancer. Join the fight with St Jude, and take the steps you can to spread awareness about this incredible facility.
