Our organization has grown from an expense budget of $3,000 in 1992, to $520,000 in 2004.  Each program added has come at the request of the medical staffs at area Hospitals and clinics treating children for this devastating disease.

Art Therapy
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Children are often not able to express their feelings about their illness and the intense treatment required. Friends provides the services of a certified Art Therapist to help these children express their feelings and learn to deal with their disease. Art Therapy gives a child with cancer a tool for empowerment, and provides a means of communication when the words cannot suffice. The children are encouraged to use their artwork as a creative outlet to release their emotions. They can then begin to sort through their feelings, confusion, and fear, so that the emotional and physical healing process can continue.

EdMAP
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(Educational and Motivational Assistance Program) Because of the lengthy treatments, many children miss numerous days of school. Friends provides high-quality, cost-free assistance to the children and their families treated at the St. Louis area treatment centers. Our EdMAP educator provides individual, small group and home tutorial sessions aimed at developing the children's self-esteem and educational motivation while comating the long term congnitive effects caused by the severity of the treatements they must endure.

Psychological Services/Support Groups
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Children with cancer and their families can sometimes experience additional acute crises during the course of their treatment. Friends provides financial assistance for crisis intervention counseling sessions for a child undergoing treatment for cancer or for the child’s entire family. These sessions take place with a professional psychologist who meets the selection criteria established by Friends. In addition, Friends offers support groups for the siblings and parents of children in treatment. The goal of these services is to help the children and their families deal with the issues that weigh so heavily on their hearts and minds.

Entertainment
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Friends has purchased computers, TVs, movies, video games, toys, board games, and books for all of the area treatment centers and clinics. Friends also provides these clinics with a terrific array of markers, paints and craft supplies to keep the children happily occupied during the course of their treatments. Almost all children love to paint and draw . . . to mold and create. These activities offer an opportunity for children to exercise their creativity and feel proud of their efforts, all the while providing them with entertainment and a distraction from their treatment.

Special Assistance
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Other charities provide a very important “once-in-a-lifetime” wish to children who are ill. With our Special Assistance Program, Friends grants a child’s request on a smaller but much more frequent basis. We fulfill special requests, which have been recommended to us by the health care providers who work with the children daily, with up to $300 annually per request. Friends has happily delivered a puppy, a new bike, an electric guitar, an indoor gym for an active toddler, a TV for a bedridden teen, a complete prom ensemble, gift certificates for a shopping spree, golf clubs, fishing equipment and many other requests as unique as each child.

Bone Marrow Transplant Unit
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The child who is hospitalized for a bone marrow transplant can expect approximately six weeks of total isolation. Due to the high risk of infection, all toys for this special unit must be brand new and can only be used by one child. Friends provides the Child Life Therapist at the transplant unit with $200 for each child to purchase special toys for their long hospitalization. Friends also maintains supplies of coffee, soups, popcorn and other individually wrapped items in the Parents’ Room of the unit.

Toy Closets and Toy Chests
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This is every child’s dream. All the latest toys for kids of all ages. Friends keeps these closets and chests stocked at all of the area treatment centers. After a particularly bad day or extremely painful procedure, a child can choose any toy he or she wants. We hear so often from the nurses and parents how the look of wonder on a child’s face can help erase all the bad episodes of the day. This is a very important aid to the caregivers as well. It can be mentally difficult to administer treatments that are painful and make the children feel so ill. To be able to bring happiness to the child is the best part of the day. Many times, a sibling of the child undergoing treatments will also get to choose a toy, since siblings’ lives are so deeply affected yet they are often overlooked in the shuffle. This program is how Friends of Kids With Cancer began, and it remains the cornerstone of our organization by providing the “little things” that can make the devastation of cancer more bearable.

Parties and Events
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Friends holds parties and events for the children and families throughout the year. The Winter Wonderland Party features exciting attractions such as interactive games, face painting, karaoke, and wonderful food donated by popular local restaurants. Our Family Night is held each year at a St. Louis family friendly place like the Magic House, and provides the families with an opportunity to spend time with one another. Friends has also sponsored group outings for patients and families to the St. Louis Zoo, sporting events, and a special trip for teenage patients to Chicago.

Ian Kyle Fund
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This program was founded to assist the growing number of children who unfortunately experience a relapse of their disease. Our goal is to provide these kids with extra-special gifts to boost their morale as they face increasingly intense treatments. It is vitally important to give hope, comfort and energy to these children and their families and to assist them in surviving another long and difficult period of treatment.

Munchie Monday
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This program originated when we realized what a rough day Monday is to the children beginning another long week of chemotherapy. In order to lighten the blue mood on Mondays, Friends began providing a yummy lunch or other treat brought in by volunteers. Whether it is a fried chicken picnic eaten on a blanket spread across the floor, the always popular pizza party, or ice cream treats on a summer day, the program provides a welcome change to the everyday routine.

Smile Makers
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Friends of Kids With Cancer is pleased to be able to offer some of the hottest tickets in town to our patients and their families through our Smile Makers Program. Dozens of generous companies and individuals continuously offer up their tickets to nearly every theater, concert and sporting event in the St. Louis area. Some donations come in as late as the day of the event, but dedicated staff and volunteers make sure they are delivered to the children who need them the most. Often, a night out is just what the doctor ordered, and an opportunity for some family fun can be very uplifting.

The Jeremy Project
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The purpose of The Jeremy Project is to give the gift of memories and celebrate life. The Jeremy Project is a not-for-profit organization that provides photographic sessions to children unable to utilize traditional photography studios due to medical reasons. Friends of Kids with Cancer helps allow families to have these sessions free of charge and create lasting memories.