Our Critical Needs Care Program tends to the most critical and urgent needs of childhood cancer patients and their families, offering help in the most meaningful ways possible. For more information on any of the following components of our Critical Needs Care Program, please contact Lisa Branch at lisa@curechildhoodcancer.org.
Open Arms
On Thursday evenings, CURE staff and volunteers bring the feeling of home to the hospital by delivering meals to both the Egleston and Scottish Rite campuses of the Aflac Cancer Center. Our generous food donors and dedicated volunteers are an integral part of this program.
Open Arms Lunch
Once a month, we serve lunch to the patients and families at Scottish Rite and Egleston. The lunch program gives companies, organizations and other CURE supporters the opportunity to volunteer on their lunch breaks and meaningfully help our patients and families. Groups, companies or individuals may sponsor one lunch at both hospitals and provide 2 to 4 volunteers who will be accompanied by CURE staff to serve lunch at each hospital. The lunches are held on the second Tuesday of each month.
Open Arms Brown Bag Lunch
On the 1st and 4th Tuesday of each month, we deliver Brown Bag Lunches to Egleston and the Aflac Center at Scottish Rite for the parents of children who are inpatient.
To keep this important extension of the Open Arms Program going, we need your help. You can sponsor a lunch by donating the cost of food, $200.00 for one month, or collect food for 60 bags and bring it to the CURE office, where our volunteers will pack the lunches. If your group would like to pack the lunches as well, CURE will provide the bags.
Family Emergency Fund
In order to ease some of the financial burdens caused by the costs of ongoing treatment, CURE provides emergency financial assistance to families of children with cancer. Families seeking financial assistance should contact their social worker about eligibility and availability of funds.
CURE Annual Weekend of Hope and Healing
When a family loses a child to cancer, we’re here to provide essential bereavement support. We match families with caring professionals. We encourage grieving families to talk with other families who have already been through this incredibly difficult journey. And we make sure, above all else, that no family endures the loss of a child alone. The next CURE Annual Weekend of Hope and Healing will be held February 2-3, 2013.
Hispanic Health Education Program
Childhood cancer doesn’t care where you come from or what language you speak. That’s why we’re providing hospitals with translated resource materials and sponsoring educational programs for Spanish-speaking parents that focus on the medical, educational, nutritional and psychological needs of a child after the diagnosis of pediatric cancer.
Caring for the Caregiver
When you’re on the front lines of childhood cancer, caring for sick kids every day, the emotional strain is massive. Our Caring for the Caregiver program provides the support and recognition these dedicated caregivers need and deserve.
- Support: We provide support breakfasts, lunches and spontaneous “pick me ups,” including Good Grief lunches – lunches for nurses and other front line caregivers facilitated by professionals trained to provide emotional support during difficult losses on the cancer uni
- Recognition: On a monthly basis, we recognize and honor the strength and endurance among the front-line caregiver
- Continuing education opportunities: we provide funding for classes, chemotherapy certifications, national cancer certifications, and conference support for nurses and family support team members to ensure that children with cancer receive the best possible care
If you have ideas for honoring caregivers, or for additional information, please contact Leigh Smith at leigh@curechildhoodcancer.org
