St. Jude Children's Research Hospital: Memphis's Beacon of Light

When you think of Memphis, TN you may think of Graceland or maybe Beale Street. Maybe the first thing that comes to your mind is Corky's barbeque. If you are a movie buff, you may think of the movie Hustle and Flow. A business person may immediately think of Federal Express. While Memphis, TN has many attractions, there is one place that stands out as a beacon of light. This place is St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

St. Jude was founded by the late Danny Thomas in 1962. Since that time, it has become the third largest healthcare charity in the United States. The research at St. Jude has earned it not only the respect of the entire world, but also a Nobel prize for medicine in 1996. Today St Jude is still run by Danny Thomas's daughter Marlo Thomas.

St. Jude is unique in that they never charge the patient beyond what their insurance will pay. It is primarily funded by contributions made through ALSAC, the fundraising organization created by Danny Thomas to support St. Jude. No patient is ever turned away from St Jude, regardless of race, religion, or ability to pay. Patients and their parents are never asked to pay a penny for the treatment they receive beyond what their insurance will cover. St. Jude also receives grants from the National Institute of Health and the National Cancer Institute as well as investments.

St. Jude is known world-wide for its research and treatment of catastrophic diseases in children. Patients come from more than 70 countries, as well as from all 50 states. St Jude has 60 inpatient beds as well as treating 4,900 children through their outpatient facilities.

So where do all of these families stay while receiving treatment through St. Jude?

If a patient is visiting St. Jude for short-term care, they can stay at the Memphis Grizzlies house. This facility can house 100 families per night and is the first housing facility to be on the campus of St. Jude.

Patients who will be receiving outpatient treatment from 8-90 days can stay at the Ronald McDonald house. This facility had 51 rooms to accommodate patients' families.

If treatment will go beyond 90 days, patients can stay at the Target house. It features 96 two-bedroom apartments. Each apartment is fully furnished and is just minutes from the hospital.

All of these facilities are offered to the patients and their families free of charge.

One organization that is affiliated with St. Jude is Wigs For Kids. This organization provides wigs for children who have lost their hair from medical conditions. Each wig is made of 150,000 strands of hair and are all hand-tied to the foundation of the wig. To donate hair, it must be at least twelve inches in length.

St Jude and Wigs for Kids both provide hope for children with cancer. St. Jude provides the medical treatment necessary to heal children. Wigs For Kids works on the children's self-esteem by providing them with wigs that can withstand a child's daily life.

If you'd like to make a donation to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, by calling 1-800-822-6344
8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. CST or visiting www.StJude.org.

If you'd like to make a donation to Wigs For Kids, you can do so by visiting their website at www.wigsforkids.org.