LONG BRANCH – The Valerie Fund Children’s Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at The Unterberg Children’s Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center will host a special tree lighting ceremony and reception from 6 to 8:15 p.m. Monday, Sept. 15, to honor Make Some Noise: Cure Kids Cancer Foundation.
The event , which will be held in front of Monmouth Medical Center’s main entrance, is part of the Go Gold for Pediatric Cancer Campaign, a joint effort between Make Some Noise: Cure Kids Cancer Foundation and Monmouth Medical Center. The campaign is designed to raise awareness of childhood cancer and the need for critical research funding during the month of September, which is recognized nationally as Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
According to the American Childhood Cancer Organization, each boy in the United States has a 1-in-300 chance of being diagnosed with cancer before his 20th birthday; every girl has a 1-in-333 chance. In spite of such high statistics, less than 3 percent of federal cancer research funding goes to pediatric cancer.
The event will feature personal perspectives from children and families who have benefited from The Valerie Fund Children’s Center, as well as commentary from Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno and Margaret Fisher, M.D., chair of pediatrics and medical director of The Unterberg Children’s Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center. Also featured will be Valerie Fund supporters Carol Stilwell and Beth McLoone, whose 17-year-old son is a former Valerie Fund patient who will share his experience as a childhood cancer survivor.
Gold ribbons, the trademark color of the Make Some Noise Foundation, will be available for all participants to place on the tree. “There is a crucial need for more pediatric cancer research and funding,” said Susan Dulczak, clinical director, The Valerie Fund Children’s Center at Monmouth Medical Center.
Also on hand at the event will be information about Roll Out The Ribbons, Monmouth Medical Center’s awareness campaign, designed to strengthen the fight against all types of cancer and honor courageous individuals who have and are fighting the battle. Throughout the summer, members of the community have had the opportunity to dedicate personalized, multicolored Ribbons of Honor to be tied to the “Promenade of Hope” along the Long Branch boardwalk to deliver messages of hope and healing to the community. Optional donations benefit programs and services for patients and family members of both the Leon Hess Cancer Center and The Valerie Fund Children’s Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders.
Additional information about Roll Out the Ribbons is available by visiting www.rollouttheribbons.com or calling 1-877-360-6275; information about Make Some Noise is available at www.makenoise4kids.org; and information about The Children’s Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center or the Valerie Fund is available at www.barnabashealth.org.
