The Valerie Fund Blog

Since 1983, The Valerie Fund's Camp Happy Times has been hosting children whose lives have been affected by a devastating diagnosis of cancer. Any child who has or has had cancer is eligible to attend the one week overnight camp located in Tyler Hill, PA. 

Topics: Non-profit, Pediatric Cancer, Blood Disorders, Charity, cancer, camp happy times, camp

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The 4th Annual Rook Run (and walk) will be held on Sunday, October 8th, 2017 on the Long Branch boardwalk.

The high energy community event benefits children in our area battling cancer and blood disorders and has already raised over $500,000 to date. Thanks to the incredible generosity of Lead Sponsor World Subaru, a raffle drawing has been added this year and a 2018 Subaru Forester SUV will be given away to one lucky ticket holder on October 8th. 

Joe Wajda, Executive Manager of the Tinton Falls dealership decided to step up World Subaru's charitable efforts at the Rook Run (and walk) after seeing firsthand the top notch care patients were receiving at The Valerie Fund Children's Center located within Monmouth Medical Center.

Topics: Non-profit, Pediatric Cancer, Blood Disorders, Charity, childhood cancer, 5k, walk, walkathon, sponsors, oncology, run, events, rook, rook coffee, new jersey, fundraising, raffle, world subaru

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On Sunday, May 21st, almost 400 Valerie Fund patients, their parents and sibilings attended this year's Morgan Stanley Recreation Day at Funplex in East Hanover, NJ. "Rec Day" is a day of fun activties for Valerie Fund patients and their families. The Morgan Stanley fundraising campaign supports two fantastic Valerie Fund activities: Rec Day and Camp Happy Times. Rec Day gives Morgan Stanley first and second year analysts the opportunity to meet and interact with the kids as they volunteer for the day.

Topics: Non-profit, Blood Disorders, Charity, camp happy times, childhood cancer, awareness, events, community events, new jersey, 40 years, fundraising, nonprofit

On Thursday, January 5th, Valerie Fund board members, staff, educational liaisons and parents all gathered at the Maplewood Country Club, in Maplewood, NJ to honor the 31 named scholarship recipients for the 2016 - 2017 academic year. The current or former Valerie Fund patients were chosen by members of the Valerie Fund Board Scholarship Committee based on merit, need or a combination of both. The program awarded 83 scholarships totaling $370,000, up by more than 30% from last year. 

Topics: Non-profit, education, pediatric, cancer, scholarship, scholarship program, new jersey

This past spring, The Valerie Fund Scholarship Program awarded 83 scholarships to patients from the seven Valerie Fund Centers for the 2016-2017 academic year. The total scholarship funding was over $370,000, up to more than 30% from last year. These scholarships have been made possible through the generosity of individuals and families to whom The Valerie Fund and our scholarship recipients are extremely grateful. 

Topics: Non-profit, education, pediatric, cancer, scholarship, scholarship program, new jersey

#GivingTuesday is a social media initiative that encourages people around the world to get involved in their communities, use their talents to help others and give back. #GivingTuesday has been celebrated on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving for the last five years and follows the frenzy of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. This worldwide day of giving marks the start of the charitable season, and is a reminder to give back during the whirlwind of the holiday season. 

 

Topics: Holiday Giving, Non-profit, Charity, childhood cancer, awareness, community events, fundraising

When Valerie’s family and friends sought to honor her memory 40 years ago, most were new to the world of philanthropy and unlikely fully aware of the challenges of raising money.

Since the first Valerie Fund Children’s Center opened at Summit’s Overlook Medical Center in 1976, the extraordinary growth of The Valerie Fund has been rooted in founders Sue and Ed Goldstein’s own heartbreaking experiences and their desire to provide compassionate care close to home. This year we will celebrate the generosity, willingness to give back and tireless efforts of so many.

While there is so much more to do, we can reflect on the 40th Anniversary of the founding of The Valerie Fund and be proud of the fact that thousands of critically ill children and their families were not alone as they navigated the many challenges faced following a devastating diagnosis of cancer or a blood disorder.

We can appreciate the integration of top-notch medical care with a growing range of customized therapeutic services offered by social workers, child life specialists, educational liaisons, psychologists and specialists in integrative medicine and palliative care. We can acknowledge that while rarely covered by health insurance, these social services play a vital role in addressing quality of life issues during the treatment and healing process.

Topics: Non-profit, Blood Disorders, cancer, childhood cancer, philanthropy, 40 years

According to Dr. Gregory Armstrong, a researcher and pediatric oncologist at  St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital who led the federally funded Childhood  Cancer Survivor Study, there are about 450,000 pediatric cancer survivors  today. This is not only great news for the hundreds of thousands of children but multiply those children by the number of immediate and extended family, you will quickly see that these little warriors each have their own personal  universe.

 

Your holiday gift to charities that support childhood cancer and blood  disorders works as an anchor and a rocket ship.  As an anchor, it allows the  charity to provide their core offerings. As a rocket ship, it allows them to  expand their menu of services to better accommodate their patient's needs. 

Topics: Holiday Giving, Philantrophy, Non-profit, Pediatric Cancer, Blood Disorders, Charity