I am Proof - Comprehensive Brochure

To the Friends of St. Louis Children’s Hospital:

Today, more than any time in our history, children diagnosed with serious illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, and respiratory conditions can survive and thrive. Babies born earlier than ever thought possible can grow and develop. We can perform surgeries and offer treatments that did not exist a decade ago.

At St. Louis Children’s Hospital, our patients are proof of this incredible progress—of lifesaving discoveries, advanced facilities, and world-class care that is made possible by our community of donors. Still, the questions that remain—the next challenges to be confronted—are among the most difficult.

• How can we improve survival rates for the most complex, resistant, and rare diseases?

• How can we diagnose and care for children earlier, before they reach the moment of needing our hospital?

• How can we transform outcomes for our most vulnerable children and St. Louis’ most underserved communities?

For the first time, we believe the pieces are in place to answer these questions. Recognizing this, our hospital is proud to lead a bold effort to invest in the most promising opportunities for pediatric patients: I AM PROOF, a campaign for St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

On behalf of the youth who count on St. Louis Children’s Hospital, we invite you to join us in creating this exciting future.

With deepest gratitude,

John Stupp, Jr. & Chrissy Taylor

Campaign Co-Chairs

Lebo, 15 St. Louis Children’s Champion

THAT YOUR GIFT MATTERS.

Lilly, 7

You are invited, in partnership with St. Louis Children’s Hospital, to shape the next great era of scientific discovery and care for children.

This is a special moment that demands action.

St. Louis Children’s Hospital launched a planning process to define the most promising opportunities to enhance child health. Now, donors are invited to invest in a strong portfolio designed to ensure every gift will be focused where it can do the greatest good.

PRIORITY #1

RESEARCH AND SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY

World-Class Talent

Exceptional Clinical Programs

Healing Environments Learning and Innovation

PRIORITY #2 ACCESS TO CARE

PRIORITY #3 PATIENT AND FAMILY EXPERIENCE

that RESEARCH FUNDED BY YOU LEADS TO TREATMENTS AND CURES.

Some research explores the root causes of disease—how our body works at its most basic cellular level. Other research emphasizes bedside care. Our Children’s Discovery Institute (CDI), a collaboration between St. Louis Children’s Hospital, its Foundation, and WashU Medicine, is specially designed to do both.

By bringing together the nation’s largest concentration of physician-scientists who hold both an MD and PhD, we can rapidly translate lab findings into better care. As one of the few pediatric teaching hospitals in the country, WashU Medicine physicians can take learnings from patient care back to research. This uniquely positions St. Louis Children’s Hospital to deliver new breakthroughs faster and identify new research avenues sooner. For children with life-threatening diseases, every moment matters.

Camille, 11

ACCELERATING DISCOVERY THROUGH EARLY INVESTMENT

Research breakthroughs are high reward. They can reshape treatments and cure diseases. Yet, early-stage research is often passed over by traditional funders. Despite receiving most of our funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the organization tends to favor conservative approaches over high-risk, high-reward ideas. And only 2–4% of the NIH budget supports pediatric research. This is why St. Louis Children’s Hospital seeks to partner with bold donors: individuals who recognize the power of flexible, early investments and are ready to seed new ideas. These early gifts are like a launch pad, allowing researchers to demonstrate proof of concept, which is key to securing larger external grants.

Children’s Discovery Institute Return on Investment

Your support will advance the following pursuits:

Expand the Children’s Discovery Institute to at least 10 Centers of Excellence focused on specific childhood diseases

Apply the CDI’s strengths and speed to complex, rare, and undiagnosed conditions

Increase external research funding to expedite treatments and cures

that clinical trials lead to lifesaving treatment.

St. Louis Children’s Hospital is the only place in the world that could offer Weston a groundbreaking trial, using his own cells to put his cancer into remission.

Weston’s Story

When he was just seven months old, Weston and his parents received news that would change their lives forever. After three weeks of flu-like symptoms and multiple trips to the pediatrician, urgent care, and emergency department, Weston was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML)—a cancer of the blood and bone marrow. Children with AML have only two approved treatment options: high-dose chemotherapy and stem cell transplant.

Weston was admitted to a hospital near the family’s home in Kansas City to begin treatment. One round of chemotherapy—that’s what his parents hoped it would take to put Weston’s cancer into remission. But it didn’t. Four rounds of chemotherapy later, Weston continued to battle with AML.

It was time for the second option: a bone marrow transplant. Four days before his first birthday, Weston underwent a successful bone marrow transplant, followed by chemotherapy. But less than three months later, he relapsed.

Weston needed a third option. That’s when his parents learned about an experimental trial being conducted by WashU Medicine physicians at Siteman Kids at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. Within the month, Weston’s family was headed to St. Louis to begin the NK1 trial, which harnessed his own immune system to fight AML. Today at age eight, Weston is officially in remission longer than he has ever been before. The NK1 trial continues to bring hope and healing to children like Weston—proof that research funded by you leads to lifesaving cures.

THAT YOU BRING EXPERT CARE INTO OUR COMMUNITY.

At St. Louis Children’s Hospital, we believe that families in every zip code should be able to access the care they need for their kids—from the earliest point of prevention to the most intense crisis. Backed by world-class WashU physicians and research-scientists, we have the opportunity to ensure that children here are among the healthiest in the nation.

To do this, we must reach beyond the walls of our hospital and bring expert care into communities throughout our region. We must treat and care for our kids where they live, play, and learn. Through the I AM PROOF campaign, donors will build a system that surrounds our youth with the resources they need to flourish—from their day cares and schools to their homes and neighborhoods.

Local Investments, National Impact

Investments here will have national influence. St. Louis Children’s Hospital has long been a role model for community health programs, especially for underserved and under-resourced neighborhoods. Consider our fleet of mobile health units, Healthy Kids Express, which includes the nation’s first-ever mobile care program for pediatric diabetes. Healthy Kids Express services are entirely funded by donors—proof that your generosity makes a profound impact on our region. Thanks to your gifts, our nurses, community health team members, and asthma coaches provide free, nationally ranked care for kids in St. Louis and beyond.

Your support will advance the following pursuits:

Expand our community health care programs to diagnose and treat before serious issues develop

Target at-risk children by providing virtual and embedded behavioral health services in 54 area schools— free of charge—to prevent or mitigate mental illness

Reduce barriers to world-class health care, no matter where our patients and families call home

THAT

EXPANDING CARE ACCESS LEADS TO REAL CHANGE.

Asthma is the most common chronic illness faced by children in St. Louis. Thanks to the St. Louis Children’s Healthy Kids Express – Asthma Program, kids like Angie learn how to manage their health with confidence and without missing school.

Angie’s story

While Angie is the only one of her five sisters to have asthma, it’s a condition that runs in the family. After her diagnosis, Angie started doing breathing treatments twice a day to prevent asthma flare-ups.

In addition, Angie receives world-class care—at no cost to her family—from the St. Louis Children’s Healthy Kids Express –Asthma Program. This mobile unit makes it possible for kids like Angie to be treated by our St. Louis Children’s Hospital care team at their school—and without a visit to the hospital.

After each visit, a report is sent home with any updates to Angie’s treatment. From administering her own breathing treatments to knowing how to use her asthma pump in case of an emergency, Angie now feels confident she can take care of herself.

Today, Angie is an active and energetic teenager—proof of what is possible with your gifts to St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

Thanks to generous donors like you, visits and treatment provided by the St. Louis Children’s Healthy Kids Express programs are 100% free to patients and their families—helping kids like Angie continue to grow and thrive within their communities.

Learn more about Angie’s story at StLouisChildrens.org/MeetAngie

THAT YOU EMPOWER COMPASSIONATE, WHOLE-FAMILY CARE.

Children heal better when all of their needs— emotional, family, and social—are met.

Wraparound services for families are more than “nice to haves”—they are essential to providing world-class care. These resources are necessary to accelerate healing, to achieve the best patient outcomes, and to make St. Louis Children’s Hospital a global destination for pediatric health care.

Through this campaign, donors will help deliver compassionate care that purposefully embraces families, that focuses on emotional well-being in addition to treatment or symptom management, and that ultimately leads to better outcomes and healthier futures.

It’s More than comfort, it’s crucial care

Programs like the Center for Families, which is available 24/7 and provides quiet areas, laundry machines, shower facilities, and access to snacks and coffee, play a vital role in meeting families’ physical and emotional needs while their child is in the hospital. Research has shown accommodations such as these measurably improve family coping and resiliency during pediatric hospitalization.

Your support will advance the following pursuits:

Expand and modernize our child– and family–friendly spaces for respite and play to promote healing

Provide patients and families with comprehensive support at and beyond the bedside

Recruit and retain highly skilled staff and physicians dedicated to compassionate care throughout a child’s life

Baby Ray, 10

St. Louis Children’s Champion

OF NATIONAL LEADERS IN PEDIATRIC TRANSPLANT SURGERY.

When Zoe was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and propionic acidemia, nearby hospitals couldn’t accommodate the heart and liver transplants she desperately needed. Only St. Louis Children’s Hospital could perform both.

Zoe’s Story

After hospitals near their home in Arkansas couldn’t help Zoe, relief came when her family learned that St. Louis Children’s Hospital could perform both transplants needed to save her life. Due to her condition, she could not leave the hospital while she waited for a heart and liver to become available. In the meantime, Zoe and her family made St. Louis home.

It was vital to keep Zoe physically and mentally strong while she awaited her transplants. Along with physical, occupational, and expressive therapies to keep her busy throughout the day, Zoe also spent time with the hospital’s onsite teachers, who connected with her elementary school to help Zoe stay on track academically.

Generous donors to St. Louis Children’s Hospital make it possible for families, like Zoe’s mom and dad, to stay with their children during an extended hospitalization. The Center for Families offers showers and a place to relax, while the hospital’s social work team provides needed support and resources every step of the way.

In 2021, Zoe received the lifesaving procedure she and her family had been waiting for. Today, she is back at home, enjoying school full-time and making new friends. Each year since her transplant, Zoe looks forward to attending Camp Rhythm, a program hosted by St. Louis Children’s Hospital for children living with heart defects. Learn more about Zoe’s story at StLouisChildrens.org/MeetZoe

#1 Children’s HOSPITAL IN MISSOURI

For 17 consecutive years, St. Louis Children’s Hospital and its physician partners at WashU Medicine have been ranked among America’s Best Children’s Hospitals. St. Louis Children’s Hospital is nationally ranked in all 11 pediatric specialties evaluated by the report—more than any pediatric hospital in the region— exemplifying its extraordinary breadth of expertise.

St. Louis Children’s currently ranks as the ninth largest children’s hospital in the U.S. and serves more than 273,000 children annually from every state and more than 80 countries around the world.