Nationwide Childrens Hospital Named LIVESTRONG® Community Impact Project Award Recipient

Nationwide Children’s Hospital was recently announced as a LIVESTRONG® Community Impact Project award recipient. The project, created by LIVESTRONG, the organization founded by cancer survivor and champion cyclist Lance Armstrong to serve people affected by cancer and empower them to take action, will bring proven cancer support programs to 55 communities across the United States.

“We are thrilled and honored to be named as a Community Impact Project award recipient,” said Jon Fitzgerald, president of Nationwide Children’s Hospital Foundation. “This award will go a long way in helping people in our community and the patients we serve who are affected by cancer. We want to give special thanks to everyone who voted in support of this program. Together, we’re making a difference in the lives of cancer survivors and their families.”

“LIVESTRONG is dedicated to providing the best direct services to people affected by cancer and encourages our supporters to be actively involved in leading this unified movement against cancer,” said Doug Ulman, president and CEO of LIVESTRONG. “The LIVESTRONG Community Impact Project is exercising an innovative approach that engages more people in our mission and allows them to play a critical role in the organization’s programming.”

One hundred seventy-nine qualified hospitals, cancer centers and community organizations in eight regions across the United States were selected to participate in an online voting campaign. Over a two-week period, more than 260,000 votes were cast and Nationwide Children’s was among the finalists.

The hospital will use the $16,000 award to establish the Creative Center’s Artists-in-Residence program. This program will offer patients the opportunity to learn about and become absorbed in their own creative resources as they meet the challenges of diagnosis, treatment and survivorship. The program at Nationwide Children’s will work bedside and in small group settings with men, women and children in oncology units, bone marrow transplant units, intensive care/respiratory units, hospice and palliative care programs.

LIVESTRONG is committed to supporting community organizations in their efforts to help cancer survivors face the challenges and changes that come with cancer. Since its inception in 1997, the organization has invested more than $68 million in community-centered organizations. It fights for the 28 million people around the world living with cancer today, and connects individuals to the support they need, leveraging funding and resources to spur innovation and engaging communities and leaders to drive social change. Known for the iconic yellow wristband, LIVESTRONG's mission is to inspire and empower anyone affected by cancer. For more information, visit www.LIVESTRONG.org.