Since 2016, Love Your Melon has gifted more than $9.8 million to support non-profit organizations leading the fight against pediatric cancer and given more than 254,000 beanies to children battling cancer. Love Your Melon’s priority funding areas include groundbreaking research, therapeutic experiences, and family support. Each year, our leadership team reviews hundreds of grant applications to ultimately select non-profit organizations to support in the year ahead. This year, Love Your Melon has pledged $400,000 to a slate of grant recipients that include nine organizations that Love Your Melon has supported in the past, as well as a new organization joining the fold: Give Kids the World Village.
Our impact couldn’t happen without our dedicated customers and incredible non-profit partners. A pediatric cancer diagnosis affects the entire family physically, emotionally, and financially. These non-profit organizations work tirelessly to ease the burden of cancer and find safe and effective treatments – across the US and around the globe. Get to know our 2023 partners!
AMOUNT GIVEN: $80,000
CUMULATIVE AMOUNT GIVEN: $718,501
Beat Childhood Cancer funds novel research and innovative clinical trials utilizing precision medicine to target solid tumor cancers in children. The organization's goal is to create viable treatment options for kids TODAY to increase survival and decrease toxicity.
Since 2019, Love Your Melon has been supporting the efforts of Beat Childhood Cancer to bring DFMO – a drug used to treat Neuroblastoma – through clinical trials to FDA approval. Neuroblastoma has a high rate of reocurrence, and DFMO is aimed to keep kids disease-free, so they can survive and thrive. We are proud to support this initiative and the network of hospitals bringing safer therapies to every child everywhere.
This year, Love Your Melon gave an additional $80,000 to support Beat Childhood Cancer's clinical patient support at all 50+ Consortium hospitals, along with expanded lab research on DFMO and other drugs targeting solid tumor cancers in children. Our funding will be split between the In:Formation Project and preclinical/clinical research.
Learn more about Beat Childhood Cancer here.
AMOUNT GIVEN THIS YEAR: $5,000
Give Kids The World Village is an 89-acre, whimsical nonprofit resort in Kissimmee, Florida, that provides critically ill children and their families from around the world with magical week-long wish vacations at no cost. Since 1986, Give Kids The World has welcomed more than 182,000 families from all 50 states and 76 countries to enjoy life-changing experiences and create unforgettable memories away from hospital stays and medical treatments.
Love Your Melon is thrilled to financially support Give Kids The World’s programs for the first time this year. Our funding will help provide endless rides on the carousel, unlimited ice cream, family celebrations, and much more – giving wish kids the chance to experience the joy and wonder of childhood, and their families an opportunity to relax, reconnect, and recapture many of the precious family moments that may have been missed due to a child’s illness.
Learn more about Give Kids the World Village here.
AMOUNT GIVEN: $10,000
CUMULATIVE AMOUNT GIVEN: $45,000
Hopecam’s mission is to overcome the social isolation experienced by children with cancer by virtually connecting them with their friends and classmates. To make these connections, we provide tablets, laptops, WIFI access, and Hopecam resources at no cost to families.
Every time a child is diagnosed with cancer and isolated from friends, their mental health is at risk. Love Your Melon’s support will allow Hopecam to change that trajectory by virtually connecting kids with their world. Hopecam helps kids feel more supported and uplifted through the power of connection.
Learn more about Hopecam's programs here.
AMOUNT GIVEN: $200,000
CUMULATIVE AMOUNT GIVEN: $1,432,620
The M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital has been a longtime partner of Love Your Melon. The hospital provides a broad range of pediatric programs and care for children battling cancer. A leader in pediatric oncology services and top-notch research, Masonic Children's Hospital was the site of the first successful pediatric bone marrow transplant.
Since 2016, Love Your Melon has provided Masonic Children’s Hospital with more than $1.4 Million Dollars in funding. This year’s gift of $200,000 will go towards building and renaming the Love Your Melon Family Resource Center within the hospital, at the site of Love Your Melon's first beanie donation event.
Learn more about the research and resource center we are supporting here.
AMOUNT GIVEN: $10,000
CUMULATIVE AMOUNT GIVEN: $85,000
One Summit’s mission is to build resilience and facilitate growth in pediatric cancer patients and their siblings through experiential learning, mentorship, community engagement and storytelling with US Navy SEALs.
Love Your Melon is proud to support One Summit’s Climb for Courage program, where pediatric cancer patients and their siblings are matched 1:1 with a U.S. Navy SEAL. Kids are guided through a series of rock-climbing challenges and curriculum based on teamwork, goal setting, and overcoming adversity. Their experience, coupled with the long-lasting relationship formed with their Navy SEAL mentor, provides each child with the additional source of strength and encouragement they need in their battle against cancer. Climb for Courage is held annually in Boston, New York City, San Diego, and Virginia Beach.
Learn more about One Summit here.
AMOUNT GIVEN: $10,000
CUMULATIVE AMOUNT GIVEN: $135,000
The Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario (POGO) ensures that everyone affected by childhood cancer has access to the best possible care and support—from a child's diagnosis, through treatment, and into survivorship.
Our gift this year will contribute to POGO’s financial assistance program, providing relief to families by reimbursing them for some of the costs they incur when their child is in treatment. It is estimated that families can lose up to 1/3 of their income and face tremendous out-of-pocket costs as one parent is often required to give up work to look after the child battling cancer.
Learn more about POGO’s programs and services here.
AMOUNT GIVEN : $10,000
CUMULATIVE AMOUNT GIVEN: $1,021,207
The Pinky Swear Foundation was founded on a pinky swear promise between a nine-year-old boy and his father as a dying wish. They promised to help children battling cancer and their families by providing support for immediate basic needs and unique family programs.
We are thrilled to be supporting the Pinky Swear Foundation for the 8th year in a row, now with over $1 million given. In the past, our funding has supported the Orange Envelope Program, which provides care packages including gift cards and resource guides to families with children newly diagnosed with cancer.
This year, Love Your Melon funding will support the All-Star Fund, which eases the financial impact of cancer through rent and mortgage payments, auto payments, gas and grocery money, and more.
Learn more about the Pinky Swear Foundation here.
AMOUNT GIVEN: $50,000
CUMULATIVE AMOUNT GIVEN: $150,000
The Ryan Seacrest Foundation (RSF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring today’s youth through entertainment and education-focused initiatives. RSF’s primary initiative is to build broadcast media centers — Seacrest Studios — within pediatric hospitals for patients to explore the creative realms of radio, television and new media.
This year’s Love Your Melon funding will help the Ryan Seacrest Foundation extend their footprint through the building of three new studios in Salt Lake City, UT, Queens, NY and Memphis, TN. These new studios will allow even more pediatric patients to explore the creative world of broadcast media and experience live musical performances, meet-and-greets with celebrities, and educational programming.
Learn more about the Ryan Seacrest Foundation here.
AMOUNT GIVEN: $20,000
CUMULATIVE AMOUNT GIVEN: $185,800
World Child Cancer’s mission is to improve diagnosis, treatment, and support for children with cancer and their families in low and middle-income countries worldwide.
This year’s Love Your Melon funding will be used to deliver family support for children with cancer globally, ensuring that children across 13 countries in Latin America, Africa, and Asia can access treatment and psychosocial support during their cancer journey. Love Your Melon will support approximately 228 children and family members. Funding will go toward covering treatment and diagnostic costs, transportation and accommodation grants for treatment and stays away from home, and psychosocial support such as counseling and play therapy.
Learn more about World Child Cancer and their programs here.
AMOUNT GIVEN: $5,000
CUMULATIVE AMOUNT GIVEN: $35,000
Zip With Us, Inc. donates custom medical access ZipShirts™ that accommodate ports, picc lines, tubes, and catheters to pediatric cancer patients undergoing chemo. These ZipShirts™ help reduce fear and allow children to remain comfortably in their clothing during treatment.
This year’s Love Your Melon funding will help Zip With Us, Inc. continue direct service to the more than 55 pediatric hospitals with free custom Zipshirts™. The gift will directly impact over 500 children and their families, allowing for a modest, more comfortable, and less scary treatment day for each hospital visit.
Learn more about Zip With Us here.
Do you want to learn more about the non-profits Love Your Melon supports? Stay tuned for social media highlights and guest blog posts, along with the introduction of our brand-new monthly giving newsletter – set to hit email inboxes this week! You can also read more about pediatric cancer and Love Your Melon giving here.
