St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

The Paws at Play program at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital plays a very important part in helping families cope with their child's diagnosis. They are trained as service dogs that distract patients from their symptoms, illness, pain, and anxiety. They are there to motivate and support too with social interaction.

You may not be using St. Jude Children's Research Hospital now, but imagine that young child in your life needs it. Won't you be happy to know it's there? That's how I feel about my little cousin.

In the next day or so, you'll hear a lot of numbers and a lot of statistics, and most of them will be positive. Numbers of Partners in Hope, numbers of phone lines lit with good people like yourself making generous donations, numbers of children's lives saved every year with the research provided by the angels at St. Jude.  I hope we raise 200,000 dollars by the end of our WGNA St. Jude Children's

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is an amazing place full of hope and promise. Inside is a wall that illustrates the "ABCs of Cancer". It is a child's perspective about what cancer is to each child.

Over the weekend, I took my 3-and-a-1/2-year-old son Brody to play in the snow at Albany's Washington Park.  It was his first time out in the snow with me, like really playing.  It was a week of firsts for him, but it needed to be a week of firsts for me as well.  I needed some perspective, and I found it this morning.

Since my first time visiting St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, I could tell this was something different. I was only there for a few days but its message and power have followed me since, especially thanks to Tyler.

My Senior year of High School I was excited about two things: Graduation and Prom. I was lucky that those two things were all I had to worry about, the children of St. Jude's don't have that luxury but St. Jude's makes sure they don't miss out either.

If you were to ask any child of that 80% a moment they remember, I'm sure this song still rings in their ears.

While visiting the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, it was eye-opening how they understand the needs of the patients and their families. There is a wall inside the hospital that deals with the ABCs of Cancer. It is a powerful and moving display from the children's perspective.

I can't even imagine having to tell a child that they have cancer; worse, imagine answering a question from a 6-year-old boy, 'Mom...Dad, am I going to die?'

Brian, Chrissy, and I had the amazing opportunity to see the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, TN a few weeks ago and I had no idea I'd come back with the stories I did. I just wish one of them didn't involve getting a St. Jude survivor in trouble!

Do you remember going to the doctor as a kid? To me, it was scary and I never really knew what was going on, just that I had to be there and chances are I needed a shot. St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital this is what makes it a completely different experience.