BRIEF:
Q&A
HelpingHands
AsSt. JudeChildren’sResearchHospital celebrates its50th
anniversary, national outreachdirector
MARLOTHOMAS
talksabout
continuingher father’s legacyof helpingkids inneed.
AMERICANWAY
:
Why did your father create
St. Jude?
MARLOTHOMAS:
Whenmy dad was a young,
struggling entertainer with a baby on the way
(me!), heasked forguidance fromSt. Jude,patron
of hopeless cases, becausehewas feelingpretty
hopelesshimself.Hepromised thesainthe’dbuild
a shrine inhis name if hegot a signhewasgoing
in the right direction. The next day he landed a
job.Hekepthispromisebydevelopingahospital
named for thesaint thatwasdevoted tostudying
cancer in children.
AW
:
Whenyouwalk thehalls of St. Jude, what
touchesyoumost?
MT:
The sheer optimism, strength and courage
of thechildrenand their parents.When I tour the
country for St. Jude, I often talk about the time I
was in themedicine room thereanda6-year-old
boyproudlyyelledout, “Mommy, Idon’thavecan-
ceranymore!”That’sallweneedandwant tohear.
AW
:
Hasthehospital’smissionchangedoverthe
past fivedecades?
MT:
We’vestayed true toour two foundingprom-
ises: that nochildwill everbe turnedaway for his
or her family’s inability to pay (we pay for every-
thing— treatment, travel, food, lodging—what-
ever it takes tomake a childbetter) and that the
hospital’spioneering researchanddiscoverieswill
always be freely sharedwith doctors and scien-
tists around theglobe.
AW
:
What is the hospital’s most noteworthy
accomplishment?
MT:
That we don’t stop looking for cures. Ever.
When the hospital opened its doors, the sur-
vival rate for themost common childhood can-
cer — acute lymphoblastic leukemia—was only
4percent. Today, becauseof St. Jude’swork, our
survival rate is94percent.
AW
:
Doescelebrity involvementhelp?
MT:
Showbusiness has always been a part of St.
Jude’s heritage. My father raised the first funds
to build St. Jude from benefit concerts he gave
with pals like Milton Berle, Sid Caesar and Bob
Hope.Well-lovedcelebritiescontinue tohelp raise
fundsandawareness. JenniferAnis-
ton isa friendofSt. Jude,andon two
separate occasions, mothers who
hadbeen told their daughterswere
terminal rushed them to St. Jude
afterseeingJenniferonaTVspot for
us. Both littlegirls survived.
AW
:
HowwillSt.Judecelebrate its
milestoneanniversary?
MT:
We have lots of celebrations
and events that will take place
around the country. What makes it
evenmore special is that 2012 will
also mark what would have been
my father’s 100th birthday. I don’t
think it’sanaccident that these two
historicevents are in the sameyear.
I’m convinced he’s still here, watch-
ingover us.
DIDYOUKNOW?
St.Judetreatsupwardof
260
patientsdaily.
Thehospitalhastreated
childrenfrom
all50states
andaroundtheworld.
St.Jude’sworkhas
helped
increaseoverall
survivalrates
for
childhoodcancers from
lessthan20to80percent.
A
$190million
patient-
careandresearchmedical
tower iscurrently in
theworks.
St.Jude isalso inthe
midstofathree-year,
$65milliongenome
project
, the largest invest-
menttodateaimedat
understandingthe
geneticoriginsofchild-
hoodcancers.
W
HENMARLOTHOMASgraced the small screen in the 1960s as
ThatGirl
, shebecamean
icon for singlecareerwomeneverywhere. Since then, theaward-winningTVand theater
actress has parlayed her success into spotlighting other social issues, authoringbooks
andco-founding theMs. Foundation forWomen,whichencourageswomen topursue leadership roles.
Thomasalso tirelesslyadvocates forSt. JudeChildren’sResearchHospital, established inMemphis,Tenn.,
in 1962 by her late father, entertainer Danny Thomas, to care for seriously ill childrenwhose families
otherwisewouldn’t be able to afford treatment.
AmericanWay
caught upwith Thomas, St. Jude’s na-
tionaloutreachdirector, as thehospital celebrates50yearsofgroundbreakingclinical researchandcare.
TODONATE
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24
FEBRUARY 01, 2012
AA.COM/AMERICANWAY
