Corporate Social Responsibility Press Release
provided by 
8.18.2008 - 02:30pm ET
News from:
The Readers Digest Association, Inc./Reader’s Digest Foundation
The Reader's Digest Foundation to Donate $100,000 to CancerCare
Nonprofit Provides Support Services to Anyone Affected by Cancer
(CSRwire) PLEASANTVILLE, NY. - August 18, 2008 - The Reader's Digest
Foundation announced today that it will donate $100,000 to
CancerCare, a national nonprofit organization that offers free,
professional support services to anyone whose life is touched by cancer:
people with cancer, caregivers, children, loved ones and the bereaved. Its
programs include counseling, education and financial assistance. The
Foundation's grant will go towards CancerCare's financial
assistance program, which helps cancer patients and their families pay
their bills.
This grant, the sixth in the Foundation’s $1 million Make it Matter
program, was inspired by the heartwarming story of Michelle Morey, a
Minnesota mom who was diagnosed with breast cancer at 37. Fortunately, she
had her own business, a comfortable income and a supportive family and, as
a result, was able to focus all her attention on getting better, rather
than worrying about paying her bills. She discovered that many of her
fellow patients didn't have the resources she had and, because of the
colossal medical expenses they faced, were having trouble heating their
homes and buying food.
Michelle and her husband began making monthly donations of $500 to
patients in financial need at the clinic where Michelle was treated. She
soon created the Pay It Forward Fund, which now serves patients at three
Minneapolis-area hospitals. The fund provides up to $1,500 a year to
dozens of women, identified by the nursing staffs, with breast, uterine,
cervical or ovarian cancer who need financial help. The grants are made
with one request: that recipients find a way to pay the fund's generosity
forward through acts of kindness toward others fighting cancer. In just
two years, the fund has raised more than $250,000 and has assisted nearly
150 women.
"Fighting cancer is hard enough without also having to fight to keep your
lights on and make your mortgage payments," said Susan Fraysse Russ,
executive director, Reader's Digest Foundation. "We're very gratified that
CancerCare recognizes this and assists people with cancer who need
financial support, and we’re very glad to help them in this critical
work."
"We are so grateful to the Reader's Digest Foundation for helping us
assist people as they face the biggest crisis of their lives," said Diane
Blum, Executive Director of CancerCare. "This support will make a
profound difference in the daily lives of people facing the emotional and
financial challenges of a cancer diagnosis."
Reader's Digest magazine is lending its support to the Foundation's
program by highlighting the stories of selected individuals in its monthly
"Make it Matter"column. Many of the submissions, including those that do
not lead to a grant, will be featured on http://www.readersdigest.com.
Submissions for Make it Matter will be accepted by the Foundation on a
rolling basis throughout 2008.
About Make it Matter:
Make it Matter is a program of the Reader’s Digest Foundation (RDF)
dedicated to promoting efforts that encourage individuals to make a
positive difference in their communities. RDF considers the public’s
stories of giving back and chooses one each month that embodies the RDF
mission and serves as an inspiration to others. For each Make it Matter
story, RDF will donate $100,000 to a nonprofit organization that furthers
the cause. Submissions from the public can be directed to http://www.readersdigest.com/foundation.
About CancerCare:
CancerCare is a national nonprofit organization that provides free,
professional support services to anyone affected by cancer: people with
cancer, caregivers, children, loved ones and the bereaved.
CancerCare programs – including counseling, education, financial
assistance and practical help – are provided by trained oncology social
workers and are completely free of charge. Founded in 1944,
CancerCare provided individual help to more than 97,000 people last
year, and had nearly 2.1 million visits to its websites. For more
information, call 1-800-812-HOPE (4673) or visit www.cancercare.org.
For more information please contact:
Jennifer Pauly, Associate Director of PR
Reader's Digest
914-244-5862
www.readersdigest.com
Monica Cavazos
CancerCare
212-712-8329
www.cancercare.org
News Categories:
Health & Wellness and Philanthropy/Corporate Contributions
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