A week from today, tens of thousands of people from around the world will run races, winding across the city of Memphis to raise money for St. Jude.
Over the past four and a half years, the hospital has spent millions on my son’s treatment. He’s had four brain operations, 18 rounds of chemotherapy, over a dozen MRIs, countless CT scans and is still undergoing weekly rehabilitation services.
Josiah’s medical record number starts with a 3, followed by four more digits. He’s in the low range of 3xxxx numbers, and staff used to always comment on the fact that his number seemed so big. Just the other day, I overheard another father checking in his child for an appointment.
Her number started with a 4.
Since July 2008, over ten thousand patients have stepped across the threshold at St. Jude. Josiah’s cancer may be rare, but he’s not alone. We may be scared about starting chemotherapy again in four weeks, but we aren’t alone.
The reality is that St. Jude depends on all of us to keep the doors open. Last I heard, it takes $1.8 million a day to run the hospital named for the patron saint of lost causes.
Join us. Be a part of the cure. The team members listed at the link are all running Saturday for my son, but the race — the fight — against cancer isn’t over yet.