St. Jude Children's Hospital Up 'til Dawn Event Is Scheduled for November
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 31, 2006
Kathleen McPartland
530-898-4260
Larry Bassow, Up 'til Dawn Advisor
530-898-5396
St. Jude Children's Hospital Up 'til Dawn Event Is Scheduled for November
The sixth annual student-sponsored Up 'til Dawn event at California State University, Chico will be held Monday evening, Nov. 13. Anyone is welcome to join students in a night of letter writing, fun and education about the work of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in researching and treating childhood cancer and other catastrophic diseases.
The event begins at 5 pm in the BMU Auditorium. Letter-writing supplies and food will be available as participants write to friends and family asking for donations for the work of St. Judes. There will be a raffle with a top prize of free spring tuition donated by Triple J Screen printing and Embroidery and two round-trip tickets to anywhere in the continental United States.
Up 'til Dawn's five-year history at CSU, Chico has been very successful. The project has raised more than $300,000 for St. Jude Children's Hospital over the last five years. Chico's Up 'til Dawn project was sixth in the nation in 2004 with donations of just over $80,000. Last year, Chico was ranked second in the nation, with $103,000.
Elizabeth Lobato, age 6, who was the featured guest of the 2004 Up 'til Dawn event, will return this year. She has osteogenesis imperfect, also called brittle bone disease. When she was born, all of her bones were broken and local hospitals were unable to offer the treatment she needed. Her parents contacted a doctor at St. Jude who works with patients with the disease.
Elizabeth currently lives in Southern California with her parents, four sisters and one brother. She started walking a year ago, which is unusual for patients who have brittle bone disease. In July 2003, Elizabeth was given her first walker and loves using it. "She teaches me every day how much I should appreciate life. She gets excited about something we take for granted, like walking," said her mother, Mary Lobato. "I am so thankful for St. Jude. They gave her the start and us the hope that we really needed."
More than 1,000 students are expected to take part in Up 'til Dawn this year. The Up 'til Dawn student board has made presentations to the student community, especially in the residence halls and to fraternities and sororities, and these presentations have been met with an overwhelmingly positive response, said Larry Bassow, program coordinator for Greek Life and advisor to the event.
Although St. Jude Hospital is located in Memphis, Tenn., doctors and hospitals from throughout the world use its work. The hospital, founded by entertainer Danny Thomas, is committed to treating all children, no matter what their economic situation.
"The daily operating costs of the hospital total more than $1 million a day," said Elissa Moody, co-director of the Up 'till Dawn. "When participants hear about Up 'til Dawn and learn about the high cost of running the hospital and the fact that patients' families never see a bill for the expensive treatments that their children receive, they get excited about helping to make a difference in these children's lives."
For more information, please contact Moody at elissamoody@hotmail.com or Bassow at 530-898-6325.
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