Forty of country music’s hottest stars joined Country Music Hall-of-Famer Randy Owen to bring bright smiles and warm words to the patients of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital on January 15.
The hospital visit was part of the annual Country Cares for St. Jude Kids radio seminar. More than 650 members of the country music industry—from artists to record label executives to radio stations—gathered in Memphis, Tennessee, this week to kick off a new season of fundraising on behalf of St. Jude.
Each year, the seminar brings the country music industry together as both a celebration of its impact on St. Jude and to reenergize station partners for their upcoming radiothon events. The weekend features roundtable discussions and brainstorming sessions that will help country radio stations conduct successful radiothons throughout the year—a focus that is more important than ever as St. Jude continues its lifesaving care during a struggling economy that has impacted millions of Americans.
“We’re so caught up in what’s going on today and with the economy,” said Owen. “And you wonder if people are still going to care. So yeah, every year I’m concerned that a dream that we all have, that we all share together, could get pushed aside, and [the mission of St. Jude will] be less important [to listeners] than it should be.”
It was Owen who, in 1989, challenged the country music industry to support the lifesaving work of St. Jude. And the industry rose to the challenge by raising more than $365 million in the program’s 20-year history.
Joining Owen were country artists Carrie Underwood, Jewel, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Steve Azar, Danny Gokey, Little Big Town, Darryl Worley, Joe Nichols and many others. Also touring the hospital were representatives from country radio stations around the country and a number of country music labels. Many expressed comments about what a unique place of hope St. Jude is for patients and their families.
“When you walk in the door of St. Jude, it is happy,” said Underwood. “There are pictures on the wall—kid-created pictures—and it is not like a hospital. It is not a cold environment.”
Gokey reiterated that sentiment, saying “The one thing I noticed is that this is a happy place. And you see the children and there is so much hope and optimism in their eyes.”
Attendees spent much of Friday morning visiting with patients and touring the campus of St. Jude, including the new Chili’s Care Center, the Patient Care Center, and labs where cutting-edge research is conducted every day.
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