The conclusion of the 2023 Y120 St. Jude radiothon, (Courtesy)
KEARNEY — For over two decades Y102 has been helping raise money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and are set to hold their “24 Hours of Hope,” event on March 28-29.
For two full days, NRG Media Central Nebraska staff, headed by Y102 hosts Scott O’Rourke and Lisa Williams, assisted by volunteers, host a telethon from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. to help raise funds for children in need.
Last year, the event raised over $303,622 and saw a record breaking first day total of $132,412 donated. Over 22 years, 3,776,387 has been raised by the event for St. Jude.
Williams has been involved in the St. Jude radio event for a total of 15 years, with a decade of those being on air.
When asked what stands out to her each year during the event, she said, “the generosity of central Nebraska is amazing.”
She noted the area has been through floods, storms and a pandemic and people continue to give their time and money each year. Businesses and organizations also have provided prizes, food, etc.
NTV News will be on site to broadcast their morning and afternoon news and report on the totals when they are announced.
There is a group of around 20 volunteers who help to make things happen, with five people manning the phone lines, always taking calls. Williams said some people volunteer for an hour, while others are on the lines all day.
Several volunteers are families who have benefited from St. Jude and return each year to help raise funds for the hospital.
When asked what she anticipates the most each year, Williams said seeing all the volunteers that return each year, many have been a part of it since day one.
She noted that everyone is working for a common goal, and they have become a kind of St. Jude family.
Giving the totals at the end of each day also stands out as something Williams looks forward to.
There are always questions about what the event’s goal is, but Williams said they never set one, “because every dollar raised matters, and everything helps.”
This year’s St. Jude event will also carry a different meaning for Williams, who received a cancer diagnosis last year and went through treatment.
Williams had visited St. Jude in the past, but last year she had just finished radiation treatment when she traveled to Memphis, Tenn., for a St. Jude event.
Williams said she saw everything through a new set of eyes, having now known what it was like to receive the diagnosis, to go through treatment. She said she, “couldn’t fathom,” going through the same things as a child.
In the past, she had always related as a mother, but this time she related as a cancer survivor, Williams said.
To donate during the radiothon, call 1-800-330-9727.
“The mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Consistent with the vision of our founder Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion or a family’s ability to pay,” per St. Jude’s website.
“Unlike other hospitals, the majority of our funding comes from individual contributions. And thanks to generous donors, families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food,” per the website.
St. Jude’s research over the years has proven pivotal in the treatment of disease.
In 1966, a group of St. Jude patients were the first acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) to ever be successfully taken off therapy. In 2006, St. Jude reported a 94 percent survival rate for patients with ALL using therapy that does not include radiation.
By 2019, St. Jude announces a cure for SCID-X1, commonly known as bubble boy disease. By combining gene therapy and low-dose chemotherapy with busulfan, immune function is restored in infants with the disorder.
