St Jude

The USAPA and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital are working together to help families and patients in need. While monies are donated from events throughout the year, so much more can be done. During this holiday season, give thanks to the healthy kids in your life and try to give to those who are not. 

One of St. Jude’s patients is Woods. Take a moment to read his story. 

Last September, Woods complained of headaches, ran a fever and threw up in the mornings after he awoke. His parents, Ashley and Henry, worried something was wrong. Just before Woods’ fourth birthday, their fears were confirmed when a CT scan revealed Woods had a type of cancerous brain tumor called medulloblastoma.

“We wanted to be where doctors saw hundreds of these types of cases.” –Henry, Woods’ Dad

Ashley and Henry were familiar with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and asked for a referral. “We wanted to be where doctors saw hundreds of these types of cases,” Henry said. Within days, the family arrived at St. Jude.

Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to more than 80% since it opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude is working to drive the overall survival rate for childhood cancer to 90%. 

At St. Jude, Woods underwent surgery to remove the tumor, followed by radiation therapy and chemotherapy, which he completed in May 2018. His family celebrated the end of his treatment with a No More Chemo party, attended by family, friends and Woods’ St. Jude care team.  

Gifts that Give

Because the majority of St. Jude funding comes from generous donors and partnerships like the USAPA, St. Jude has the freedom to focus on what matters most – saving kids regardless of their financial situation. Every dollar counts. When you dedicate your tournament or create your own fundraiser for St. Jude this is how you can make a difference:

$57 Help provide necessities for parents who may have hurriedly left home after their child’s diagnosis.

$100 Help provide a platelet count test for two patients: Platelet counts are among the tests doctors use to monitor patient health during treatment.

$250 Help provide a meal card for a St. Jude family for one week: St. Jude provides patients and their families with meal cards for breakfast, lunch and dinner in Kay Kafe, the hospital’s cafeteria. $500 Help provide one platelet transfusion: During chemotherapy, the platelet count of patients can drop to dangerously low levels so platelet transfusions are essential for treatment.

$750 Help cover the cost of five days of oxygen for a St. Jude patient. During treatment, St. Jude patients may need oxygen to help their bodies function properly and aid in healing.

$1000 Help cover about two-thirds of the cost of one day of chemotherapy: Treatments invented at St. Jude have helped push the overall survival rate for childhood cancers from 20 percent when the hospital opened in 1962 to more than 80 percent today.

$2,500 Help cover the cost of 16 days of oxygen for a St. Jude patient: During treatment, St. Jude patients may need oxygen to help their bodies function properly and aid in healing.

$5,000 Help cover the cost of the daily room rate of the ICU: The Intensive Care Unit at St. Jude has twice been recognized with the Beacon Award for Critical Care Excellence given by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses. In 2009, the St. Jude ICU became Tennessee’s first ICU to win the honor.

$7,500 Help provide nearly two months of Child Life Specialist services: Child Life specialists reduce the anxiety that many kids feel when they become patients at St. Jude. These nurturing professionals help St. Jude kids lead as normal a life as possible by playing learning games with the children and providing them with structured family and peer interaction.

$10,000 Help provide grocery gift cards for two years for one St. Jude family: Families whose children are undergoing long-term treatment live at St. Jude Target House free of charge. Each week, Target House families receive a grocery gift card from Kroger so that they may cook their own meals and eat together in their apartment if they choose. These shared meals help families maintain a sense of togetherness during trying times.

$12,500 Help provide one day of inpatient care: Although the majority of patients at St. Jude are treated as outpatients, the hospital is licensed for 80- beds for patients requiring a hospital stay. $15,000 Help run the St. Jude Blood Donor Center for one week: The Blood Donor Center, located on the first floor of the Patient Care Center, is responsible for collecting and providing the hospital with platelets and other blood products necessary for our patients care.

$25,000 Help cover the cost of a major surgical procedure: St. Jude revolutionized pediatric cancer treatment around the world with its groundbreaking use of a combination of chemotherapy, radiation and surgery to treat childhood cancers.

Since the USAPA’s partnership began with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in 2016, a total of $70,000 has been donated!

When you make a donation using this information, your donation will be used to provide breakthrough research, treatment and cures. Items listed here are representative of services and supplies that are part of the treatment and care of children at St. Jude. The cost of each item or service is an approximation, and will vary based on actual costs incurred and individual patient needs. Your donation will be used for the general operating needs of St. Jude, where no family ever receives a bill for treatment, lodging, travel or food.

Make your next tournament count by dedicating it to the kids of St. Jude:

1.800.457.2444 or specialevents@stjude.org