Northwestern Mutual Announces Childhood Cancer Initiatives to Ease
Financial and Emotional Burden for Children and their Families
MILWAUKEE, Nov. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Northwestern
Mutual, through its foundation, is donating 10 Starlight Children's
Foundation Fun Centers ™ to seven children's
hospitals in several U.S. cities, and funding two programs –
Starlight Great Escapes ™ and Alex's Lemonade
Stand Foundation (ALSF) Family Travel Funds – as part of its
Childhood Cancer Program, a multi-year commitment to support
families fighting childhood cancer.
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Starlight Fun Centers are mobile entertainment units that
easily roll up to a hospital bed so children can play video games
and watch movies. Whether nervously awaiting surgery, enduring
treatment, or sitting in their hospital room, Fun Centers
help children cope by providing endless hours of fun and
distraction.
Northwestern Mutual's support of three Starlight Great
Escapes programs in Los
Angeles and Houston will
give families with a seriously ill child the chance to spend time
together outside of the hospital, escape their medical worries and
return home with a renewed sense of strength, hope and
community.
"Through our Childhood Cancer Program, Northwestern Mutual is
harnessing the power of our 5,000 employees and 18,000 network
office members to accelerate the search for a cure to childhood
cancer, and provide support to children and families facing the
daily struggles of the disease," said John
Kordsmeier, president of the Northwestern Mutual
Foundation.
"Many members of our Northwestern Mutual family have been
touched by childhood cancer and share a passion for helping this
cause. They have been instrumental in arranging these donations in
their local communities alongside our nonprofit partners,"
Kordsmeier continued.
Northwestern Mutual is also establishing the Family Travel
Fund in partnership with ALSF, with donations unveiling at
Children's Hospital of Wisconsin,
Phoenix Children's Hospital, and at Miami Children's Hospital. The
Family Travel Fund supports ALSF's existing efforts to
assist families facing the financial costs of traveling to help
their children receive life-saving treatments away from home. The
Fund helps families pay for expenses such as food, airfare, gas and
lodging.
The donations and dedication ceremonies kick off this week at
Banner Thunderbird Children's Medical Center in Glendale, AZ, on Nov.
13, and at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin, in Milwaukee, on Nov.
15. The philanthropic activities, serving more than 5,000
children in total, will continue over the next few weeks in
Phoenix, Tucson, Miami, Los
Angeles and Albuquerque, culminating on Dec. 11 in Houston. The complete list of donations and
dedications include:
Milwaukee
- Thurs., Nov. 15 - Children's
Hospital of Wisconsin in
Milwaukee
- Starlight Fun Center Dedication and ALSF Travel Fund
Announcement
Phoenix
- Tues., Nov. 13 - Banner
Thunderbird Children's Medical Center in Glendale
- Starlight Fun Center Dedication
- Wed., Nov. 28 – Phoenix
Children's Hospital in Phoenix
- Starlight Fun Center Dedication and ALSF Travel Fund
Announcement
Albuquerque
- Fri., Nov. 30 – University of New Mexico Children's Hospital in
Albuquerque
- Starlight Fun Center Dedication
Miami
- Tues., Dec. 4 – Joe
DiMaggio Children's Hospital in Hollywood
- Starlight Fun Center Dedication
- Early Dec. – Miami Children's Hospital in Miami
- Starlight Fun Center donation and ALSF Travel Fund
Announcement
- Early Dec. – Chris Evert Children's Hospital at Broward
Health in Coral Springs
- Starlight Fun Center donation
Tucson
- Wed., Dec. 5 – Diamond Children's
Medical Center in Tucson, AZ
- Starlight Fun Center Dedication
Los Angeles
- Sat., Nov. 24 – UCLA vs. Stanford at
the Rose Bowl
- Sat., Dec. 8 – Winter Wonderland,
CBS Studios in LA
Houston
- Tues., Dec. 11 – Hobby
Center Theatre Under the Stars in Houston
In the midst of these philanthropic activities, the Northwestern
Mutual Foundation will launch a digital holiday campaign on
Dec. 3 to raise additional awareness
and funds for the fight against childhood cancer. Driving the
digital campaign will be a dedicated Facebook tab featuring a
holiday card created by a child with cancer. For each "share" the
digital holiday card receives, the Northwestern Mutual Foundation
will donate $1 to ALSF and Starlight,
up to $25,000. The campaign will run
through Dec. 30 and is part of the
Foundation's larger commitment to the fight against childhood
cancer.
For more information about Northwestern Mutual and its
Foundation, visit www.northwesternmutual.com.
About the Northwestern Mutual Foundation
The mission
of the Northwestern Mutual Foundation – the largest corporate
foundation in the state of Wisconsin – is to build strong, vibrant
communities that serve as a legacy to future generations. The
Foundation's giving is designed to create an impact on the
communities where the company's employees and financial
representatives live and work. In fiscal year 2013, the Foundation
will contribute $16.9 million to
nonprofit organizations across the country.
About Northwestern Mutual
The Northwestern Mutual Life
Insurance Company – Milwaukee, WI
(Northwestern Mutual) – among the "World's Most Admired" life
insurance companies in 2012 according to FORTUNE® magazine – has
helped clients achieve financial security for more than 155 years.
As a mutual company with $1.3
trillion of life insurance protection in force, Northwestern
Mutual has no shareholders. The company focuses solely and directly
on its clients and seeks to deliver consistent and dependable value
to them over time. Northwestern Mutual and its subsidiaries
offer a holistic approach to financial security solutions
including: life insurance, long-term care insurance, disability
insurance, annuities, investment products, and advisory products
and services. Subsidiaries include Northwestern Mutual Investment
Services, LLC, broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, member
FINRA and SIPC; the Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company,
limited purpose federal savings bank; and Northwestern Long Term
Care Insurance Company; and Russell Investments.
About Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation
Alex's Lemonade
Stand Foundation (ALSF) emerged from the front yard lemonade stand
of cancer patient Alexandra "Alex" Scott (1996-2004). In 2000,
4-year-old Alex announced that she wanted to hold a lemonade stand
to raise money to help find a cure for all children with cancer.
Since Alex held that first stand, the Foundation bearing her name
has evolved into a national fundraising movement, complete with
thousands of supporters across the country carrying on her legacy
of hope. To date, Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation, a registered
501(c)3 charity, has raised more than $60 million toward fulfilling
Alex's dream of finding a cure, funding over 250 pediatric cancer
research projects nationally. For more information on Alex's
Lemonade Stand Foundation, visit AlexsLemonade.org.
About Starlight Children's Foundation
When a child is
diagnosed with a serious illness, the day-to-day joys of childhood
take a back seat to the rigors of treatment and hospitalization.
Starlight Children's Foundation™ is a leading global health and
education charity working to embrace, empower and enrich the lives
of children from illness to wellness. Since 1983, Starlight
has been improving the quality of life for children with serious
medical conditions through programming that helps kids cope with
the experiences of prolonged illness. Starlight's innovative
programs have been proven to distract children from their pain and
lessen the need for pain medication, help young people better
understand and manage their illness, and connect families with
others facing similar challenges so that no one feels alone.
Each year Starlight enriches the lives of more than 4.5 million
children globally by providing ongoing support to children, parents
and siblings through a network of partner hospitals, staff and
volunteers in the US, UK, Canada,
Australia, New Zealand and Israel. To learn more visit
www.starlight.org.
SOURCE Northwestern Mutual