12/20/2011
The 58th Annual Free Care Fund Benefit Show for Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC raised more than $1.6 million in donations and pledges during the annual broadcast held on Thursday, Dec. 15, at Children’s Hospital’s main campus in Lawrenceville and at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Oakland. The show was broadcast on KDKA-TV and NewsRadio 1020 KDKA.
“At Children’s, we never want parents to worry about whether they can afford their child’s health care. Gifts both big and small help us continue the tradition of providing free care to children in need without financial boundaries,” said Greg Barrett, president, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Foundation. “Each year, the Free Care Fund Benefit Show becomes more successful than the previous year thanks to the ongoing support of local schools, organizations, corporations and community members who help fundraise and ensure that the best care possible is available to sick and injured children from this region.”
The Free Care Fund provides free and uncompensated care to children who need the expert and compassionate care of Children’s Hospital, but whose family cannot afford it because of lack of health insurance, a child who has an illness that exceeds what insurance will pay, has a chronic illness, or needs experimental treatment.
Last year, Children’s provided more than $36 million in free and uncompensated care to more than 34,000 families in the region.
The top three corporate donors to this year’s 2011 Free Care Fund Benefit Show were Howard Hanna Real Estate Services, Eat’n Park and GNC. The top school donors were Avonworth Middle and High Schools, Derry Area Middle School and State Street Elementary School.
For more information about the Free Care Fund or to make a donation, visit Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Foundation’s website at www.givetochildrens.org, or call the Foundation at 412-692-3900 or 1-877-CHP-GIVE.
Andrea Kunicky, 412-692-6254, andrea.kunicky@chp.edu
Marc Lukasiak, 412-692-7919, marc.lukasiak@chp.edu