Click here to enable the accessibility widget for this website (Can also be opened using the Alt+9 Key)

Kosair Charities Surprises Gilda’s Club Kentuckiana with $1 Million Grant

Kosair Charities delivered early on a promise to Gilda’s Club Kentuckiana Thursday by delivering a check for 1 million dollars to help children and their families who are living with cancer. September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. During a Thursday news conference, Kosair Charities President Barry Dunn and Gilda’s Club Kentuckiana President and CEO Karen Morrison talked about the generous grant.

“We are grateful to partner with Gilda’s Club Kentuckiana as they help Kosair Kids and their families during what can be a very scary time for a child,” Dunn explained. “We know the great work Gilda’s Club Kentuckiana does to help children cope in their time of need. When Kosair Charities heard that our friends at Gilda’s Club Kentuckiana needed a helping hand, we decided that we needed to pay ahead on a $1 million promise that we’d made Gilda’s Club Kentuckiana.”

The $1,000,000 payment is the entire amount of a continuation grant Kosair Charities was to begin paying in annual installments next month. Today’s announcement could not have come at a better time as inflation and economic uncertainty have impacted Gilda’s Club fundraising.

“It has been a really tough year for us,” Morrison said. “We have served more people than ever before in our history. We are offering about 180 free programs per month, and many of those are in a hybrid fashion so they are available both in person and virtually, yet our fundraising has been down. We have raised about 26% of our budget as of the end of August and typically that’s more like 45%.”

Gilda’s Club Kentuckiana opened its red doors 15 years ago, becoming the first cancer support community of its kind in the area with the unique mission of ensuring those affected by cancer are empowered by knowledge, strengthened by action, and sustained by the community. It is a place for the whole family. Their youngest member with cancer was diagnosed in utero. Gilda’s Club focuses on treating symptoms such as fear, anxiety, helplessness, and isolation.

“We have the strongest children’s oncology psychosocial support program in the world, and that is really because of Kosair Charities,” Morrison added. “I can’t imagine what Gilda’s Club would be like without Kosair Charities. It has been a phenomenal partnership since day one. We cannot express enough how much today’s generosity means to Gilda’s Club Kentuckiana and the hundreds of families who rely on our support.”

Kosair Charities will enter its second century of service in 2023. Kosair Charities strives to help children realize their potential while overcoming obstacles based on trust, honesty and integrity, collaboration, prudent financial stewardship, and inclusion.

“Cancer does not care about inflation, economic instability, or COVID, it marches on,” said Dunn. “This grant delivers on Kosair Charities’ mission to enhance the health and well-being of children by delivering financial support for healthcare, research, education, social services, and child advocacy. This is a mission we have lived for 100 years, and it is a mission Kosair Charities will continue as we enter our second century of service.”

Dsc02455