An ariel view of the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Photo downloaded from the St. Jude website
The kids and families of St. Jude are always in need of help and support. Over the past few years, the Deer Creek Mackinaw community has been fundraising for St. Jude and pouring into these kids. There are many opportunities throughout the year for anyone to be a supporter whether it’s through donations or through prayers, love, and thoughts. The Dee-Mack students and community members have been raising money through the Mackinaw to Peoria run, the school’s donations, and the telethon. Over the years, the Dee-Mack community has raised over $130,000 for St. Jude.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is a hospital and nonprofit organization in Memphis, Tennessee that provides cancer research, treatment, and more at no cost to the families and patients. This organization was founded by Danny Thomas in 1962. According to St. Jude’s website, the goal of the organization is “to advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Consistent with the vision of our founder Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion or a family’s ability to pay.” Camp Hope, another non-profit organization, provides a week of summer camp for children with cancer and blood diseases and their siblings. Camp Hope is not affiliated with St. Jude and does not receive funding from St. Jude. Although St. Jude and Camp Hope are not affiliated, Camp Hope serves St. Jude patients and their families. Camp Hope is a no-cost summer camp for kids with cancer and blood diseases. There are nurses who take care of the children during the week, so that even if a child is on active treatment, they can still attend camp.
Becky Dailey, a school provider at OSF Children’s Hospital of Illinois in Peoria and board member for the Camp Hope Foundation was interviewed about her involvement with Camp Hope and St. Jude. Regarding Camp Hope, she says she has enjoyed “seeing the kids at Camp Hope thrive and connect with other kids.” As she has seen two different sides of the kids from their treatment in the hospital, to being able to experience a summer of fun with their friends. Dailey says, “they get to be a kid and they have such big smiles.” Wrapping up this question, Dailey adds, “working as a team to provide the best week to these kids is a huge bucket filler.” The last question Becky Dailey was asked is, “how have you seen fundraising from the Dee-Mack community directly affect these kids and their families?” She explains how the money donated to Camp Hope goes straight to the program planning and activities during camp.
Dee-Mack High School student council has participated in the St. Jude Telethon for many years. This past August was the 48th annual Telethon. During the telethon, student council members answer phones and make phone calls to people, take pledges, and raise money. In 2024, Dee-Mack reached what is called silver status. This means that Dee-Mack’s steady fundraising has put the school in the top 3 schools in the Peoria area! The only other schools in the area with this achievement are Peoria Notre Dame and Dunlap High School. With silver status, Dee-Mack received a fundraising website through St. Jude so that fundraising efforts can continue all year, and not just the day of the telethon. Ms. Putney, a student council supervisor, stated that student council continues to raise money every year because there are many people in the community who have been impacted by St. Jude and its efforts. She also said that the organization is “so close to the Dee-Mack family”. In 2024, the school’s efforts raised $5,700 for St. Jude and Camp Hope.
On the same day as the telethon, runners from all over the state of Illinois run to Peoria. The St. Jude Runs is a very common way to raise money for St. Jude. Each runner is required to raise at least $1,000 dollars, and some raise even more! Sarah Christopher ran from Memphis to Peoria this year. She claimed that “Being involved in the Memphis to Peoria run has been very uplifting and eye opening. The run is like anything else I’ve ever done. It’s something I love doing, while also being able to help others. You learn so many things about St. Jude and their mission. You also get to meet so many new people and hear about their stories. It’s hard to describe exactly what the run is like, unless you do it. If anyone is considering joining, don’t hesitate. It’s a great way to raise money for St. Jude all while learning more about the cause”. This year, runners, telethonners, and other fundraising efforts combined to a total of $12,134,722 raised for the children at St. Jude. This is a record breaking event and something the state of Illinois should be so proud of.
Over the years, the Deer Creek Mackinaw schools and community have been crucial supporters of St. Jude and Camp Hope. From donations to kind words, there is always a family in need and these things can help take that next step in overcoming childhood cancer. The journalism students thank the Dee-Mack community for your endless support of the children of St. Jude.
Sources: https://www.stjude.org/