AN INSPIRING TWO DAYS: THE ST. JUDE NEXTGEN EVENT!

Seven years ago, I was a 12-year-old soccer juggler from California walking through the doors of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee for the first time, excited and grateful to be visiting the hospital as a humble supporter being honored for my efforts to raise funds and awareness.

For many, walking through the doors of St. Jude is a completely different experience — one I will never fully appreciate. But what I do understand is the immediate and overwhelming feeling of relief and hope when you arrive at St. Jude.

I’m thrilled to share that earlier this week, I was finally able to return the hospital. It looks just like I remembered it! Well…except for the new six-floor Inspiration4 Advanced Research Center with more than 1,000 employees researching developmental neurobiology, immunology, cell and molecular biology, gene editing, and more. And the 140-unit on-site housing facility called Domino’s Village, with a clear tunnel connecting straight to the hospital for ease of travel for children being treated at St. Jude.

But St. Jude isn’t the only thing that has grown up :). The final two photos are from 2017!

In 2017, I was honored at the 60th anniversary of ALSAC (St. Jude’s fundraising arm) with the Jerry Nicholson Award as the leading young fundraiser. This time around, I was attending the St. Jude NextGen event— which celebrates St. Jude’s High School Leadership Society and collegiate partners, including Tau Kappa Epsilon chapters, as well as ALSAC’s summer internship cohorts. We had the privilege of hearing from many inspirational panelists, including St. Jude families, VPs of marketing and fundraising, and of course, ALSAC CEO Rick Shadyac.

I was thrilled to be a speaker for one of the collegiate cohort sessions entitled “Passion with Purpose.” I spoke about my juggling and fundraising journey, as well as the importance of teen purpose cultivated through meaningful service. I also explored how purpose applies in the college setting and what we can all do next to forge our purpose and support St. Jude. The 200 college students in the group were an incredible audience, and I loved hearing about their fundraising campaigns from all parts of the country. You can look at my Instagram for some highlights :)

Here are some photos from our tour! I already can’t wait to go back to St. Jude! The inspiration is endless!

As always, if you want to donate to my fundraiser to help kids with cancer at St. Jude and worldwide, via the research they share freely, you can do that here.

Thank you for your support!

~Hollis