MEMPHIS, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--2022 was a year to remember for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®, as it united supporters globally for its lifesaving mission: Finding cures. Saving children®. Thanks to the generosity of more than 12 million donors worldwide, St. Jude was able to advance its six-year $12.9 billion strategic plan — a plan that helps kids everywhere by accelerating global progress in curing pediatric cancer and other life-threatening diseases.
The generosity of St. Jude donors had a profound impact on the lives of children and families around the globe, making possible some of the most memorable stories of 2022. Chief among them was the SAFER Ukraine collaboration that gave viewers nationwide an extraordinary glimpse into the efforts by St. Jude and its global partners to evacuate Ukrainian pediatric cancer patients and their families to places of safety where they could continue treatment, including in Memphis, Tennessee, the hometown of St. Jude.
Here is that story and four others that brought people hope and inspiration this year:
- Answering Ukraine’s call: In March, eight Ukrainian children with cancer and their family members arrived safely at St. Jude, the first hospital in the United States to receive patients fleeing a war torn homeland. Their stories exposed the second battlefront in the ongoing invasion: a fight against cancer waged by children, their families, and the St. Jude Global network that worked tirelessly to coordinate safe transportation, translate vital documents, and connect children 5,000 miles away to the care they needed.
- Creating priceless moments: St. Jude patients marked several firsts this year: chatting with the crew of the Polaris Dawn space mission, gaming alongside DrLupo and his son at the first on-site Build Against Cancer livestream, teeing off with championship golfer Collin Morikawa and challenging him to a dance-off, and even meeting First Lady Jill Biden.
- Making history in the National Civil Rights Museum: A special exhibit at the National Civil Rights Museum showcased the 60-year St. Jude legacy of defying racial inequities within healthcare and spotlighted the role St. Jude has played in equalizing access to healthcare regardless of race, religion or ability to pay. The exhibit wrote St. Jude into the national conversation on equity by highlighting Black leaders, staff and patients whose lives shaped and were shaped by St. Jude.
- Bringing art to life: St. Jude patients create heartfelt and expressive works of art each year while undergoing treatment, but this year those masterpieces traveled far and wide. They landed on the side of a Monster Jam® truck, sailed ashore a cruise ship and went toe to toe with the world’s best golfers.
- Forging a friendship through Ironman competition: Three St. Jude dads who formed a friendship while their children were being treated by St. Jude put themselves through one of the most powerful demonstrations of physical and mental strength: the St. Jude IRONMAN 70.3 Memphis. The fathers took on the 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride and 13.1-mile run to raise funds for St. Jude, showing that no distance is too great when you’re helping give young people a chance to live their best lives.
Create more memorable moments in the New Year with an end of year donation to St. Jude, named by decision intelligence company Morning Consult as the Most Trusted Nonprofit Brand of 2022.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Its purpose is clear: Finding cures. Saving children.® It is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. When St. Jude opened in 1962, childhood cancer was considered incurable. Since then, St. Jude has helped push the overall survival rate from 20% to more than 80%, and it won't stop until no child dies from cancer. St. Jude shares the breakthroughs it makes to help doctors and researchers at local hospitals and cancer centers around the world improve the quality of treatment and care for even more children. Because of generous donors, families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food, so they can focus on helping their child live. Visit St. Jude Inspire to discover powerful St. Jude stories of hope, strength, love and kindness. Support the St. Jude mission by donating at stjude.org, liking St. Jude on Facebook, following St. Jude on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok, and subscribing to its YouTube channel.