Motto: "Don't give up..... Don't ever give up!"
Jim Valvano
Vital, valiant, valuable, victorious.......
These "V" words all describe Jimmy Valvano, a vigorous college basketball coach, remembered most in sports for coaching a decided underdog North Carolina State team to a surprising national collegiate championship in 1983----breaking Houston's 26-game winning streak in the finals.
[caption id="attachment_3790" align="alignright" width="200" caption="Jim Valvano"]
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He was also an award-winning broadcaster---but so much more than that. He was a beloved husband, father of three daughters, son, and brother to his family; a valued friend to hundreds; and a hero to millions.
March 4, 1993: Jim Valvano was honored with the Arthur Ashe Courage and Humanitarian Award at the first annual ESPY Awards. Sportscaster Dick Vitale and Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzwski helped him to and from the stage because cancer had already taken a toll on his body. His acceptance speech is legendary. He made his audience laugh, think, and cry----which he encouraged them to do every day. He spoke of the importance of family, friends and dreams. Three things were to be remembered: Where you came from, where you are, and where you are going.
"How do you go from where you are to where you want to be? I think you have to have enthusiasm for life. You have to have a dream, a goal and you have to be willing to work for it."
Jim then quoted Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Nothing great can be accomplished without an enthusiasm." After accepting his award, he made an announcement that gave new hope to millions. ESPN had joined with Jimmy Valvano to establish
The V Foundation for Cancer Research.
[caption id="attachment_3792" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Jim Valvano"]
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James Thomas Anthony Valvano died of bone cancer a month later after a valiant ten-month long battle. He was 47 years old.
However, his dream of eradicating cancer lives on. In just sixteen years, The V Foundation for Cancer Research has raised over $80 million and awarded cancer research grants to 92 institutions in 38 different states and the District of Columbia. The most promising projects are the ones funded.
These funds raised have helped promising young researchers develop their laboratories and take their work to clinics. In only nine years The V Foundation has awarded 109 V scholar grants.
The V Foundation takes pride in announcing that 100 percent of all new direct cash donations go to cancer research and related programs. For six consecutive years, The V Foundation has been awarded the top Four Star Charity rating by Charity Navigator. This puts it in the top 2% of all charities evaluated.
A Scientific Advisory Board is made up of some of America's leading physicians and research scientists from top universities and cancer centers. These men and women oversee the proposals and assure the funding is properly allocated. They provide guidance and support.
In 1993, Jim asked the original 15 members of the Board of Directors to "carry on his fight." Today, each one of them remains committed to fulfilling that mission. Now, the Board is 29 members strong and is made up of business leaders, award winning athletes and coaches, distinguished physicians and scientists, and well known entertainers. They work to keep the core values and principles strong.
[caption id="attachment_3789" align="alignright" width="236" caption="George Bodenheimer"]
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George Bodenheimer, President of ESPN and ABC Sports, serves as a member of The V Foundation Board. He is quoted as saying, "ESPN's commitment to V is stronger than ever because we know all our efforts and this money is making a difference to researchers across the country. We continue to respond to Jim's challenge to enhance the lives of our families and friends. We want to be one of his Cinderella teams that cuts down the net on cancer."
Steven Bornstein, President and CEO of NFL Network and a Board member, said, "The V Foundation is a family, and all we want to do is cure cancer, plain and simple......a disease that affects a third of the people on this planet."
Cancer is personal for each of us. Cancer kills about one American every minute of every day, or about 1,500 people during a 24 hour period. One of every two men and one out of three women will get cancer in their lifetimes. Three out of every four U. S. families will have at least one family member diagnosed with cancer.
More than 565,000 Americans died of cancer in 2008. In this country it is the second leading cause of death, responsible for 1 in 4 deaths.
The good news is that cancer researchers have a clear understanding of how cancer evolves. American Cancer Society states that, "We are at a crossroads in the history of cancer research, and we are poised to make expotential gains, to even reduce it to a chronic disease, like diabetes. For the first time in more than 70 years, annual cancer deaths in the United States have fallen."
Nationwide data began to be compiled in the 1930's. Today, 66 percent of adults diagnosed with cancer will be alive in five years, and 80 percent of children with cancer will be alive in five years. With these facts in mind, The V Foundation is moving forward by adding community events and donors every year.
The events are varied and include the Jimmy V Basketball Classic for four men's collegiate teams and the Classic for women's collegiate teams. The Women's Basketball Coaches Association announced it raised $1,362,000 through its WBCA Pink Zone initiative. The Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund in partnership with The V Foundation is the WBCA's Charity of Choice.
Delta Chi fraternity hosted a "V" Day to raise money for The V Foundation, and this led to ESPN founding a "V" Week. Applebees' restaurants in three states have an annual fundraiser that consists of selling paper basketballs to personalize and hang for a dollar donation. This Apple Gold effort has raised $150,000.
The Jimmy V Atlanta Celebrity Golf Classic is one of several golf tournaments devoted to raising funds for cancer research. Other activities and community efforts include walks, runs, softball games, basketball games, and even the sale of jewelry-making beads.
The National Association of Sports Officials have a Blow the Whistle on Cancer campaign. After doing research this organization chose The V Foundation as a partner. This is the first national charitable organization the 17-thousand member NASO has supported.
Several families and special friends have elected to raise their own grant money to honor or remember a loved one. The Bucher family of Fort Mill, South Carolina is one such family. Their son, Todd, lost his 18 month long battle with Ewings Sarcoma at the age of 17. His life inspired his family and friends to present a $50,000 grant through The V Foundation to Dr. Paul Meyers of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center who was doing research on Ewings tumors. Later, $25,000 more was donated.
The Carroll family of Middleburg, Virginia decided to honor their son Christopher, who died of lung cancer at age 41, by continuing his fight against cancer. Donations from the Christopher T. Carroll Memorial Fund to The V Foundation are used to fund the $300,000 translational grant awarded to Jeffrey Settleman, Ph.D at the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center. Dr. Settleman's three year project is to work on lung cancer research.
These people share the vision of The V Foundation----they won't give up.
Jimmy Valvano ended his 1993 ESPY Awards speech with these memorable words:
"Cancer can take away all my physical abilities. It cannot touch my mind. It cannot touch my heart, and it cannot touch my soul. And these three things are going to carry on forever. Thank you, and God bless you all."
[/caption]
He was also an award-winning broadcaster---but so much more than that. He was a beloved husband, father of three daughters, son, and brother to his family; a valued friend to hundreds; and a hero to millions.
March 4, 1993: Jim Valvano was honored with the Arthur Ashe Courage and Humanitarian Award at the first annual ESPY Awards. Sportscaster Dick Vitale and Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzwski helped him to and from the stage because cancer had already taken a toll on his body. His acceptance speech is legendary. He made his audience laugh, think, and cry----which he encouraged them to do every day. He spoke of the importance of family, friends and dreams. Three things were to be remembered: Where you came from, where you are, and where you are going.
[/caption]
James Thomas Anthony Valvano died of bone cancer a month later after a valiant ten-month long battle. He was 47 years old.
However, his dream of eradicating cancer lives on. In just sixteen years, The V Foundation for Cancer Research has raised over $80 million and awarded cancer research grants to 92 institutions in 38 different states and the District of Columbia. The most promising projects are the ones funded.
These funds raised have helped promising young researchers develop their laboratories and take their work to clinics. In only nine years The V Foundation has awarded 109 V scholar grants.
The V Foundation takes pride in announcing that 100 percent of all new direct cash donations go to cancer research and related programs. For six consecutive years, The V Foundation has been awarded the top Four Star Charity rating by Charity Navigator. This puts it in the top 2% of all charities evaluated.
A Scientific Advisory Board is made up of some of America's leading physicians and research scientists from top universities and cancer centers. These men and women oversee the proposals and assure the funding is properly allocated. They provide guidance and support.
In 1993, Jim asked the original 15 members of the Board of Directors to "carry on his fight." Today, each one of them remains committed to fulfilling that mission. Now, the Board is 29 members strong and is made up of business leaders, award winning athletes and coaches, distinguished physicians and scientists, and well known entertainers. They work to keep the core values and principles strong.
[caption id="attachment_3789" align="alignright" width="236" caption="George Bodenheimer"]
[/caption]
George Bodenheimer, President of ESPN and ABC Sports, serves as a member of The V Foundation Board. He is quoted as saying, "ESPN's commitment to V is stronger than ever because we know all our efforts and this money is making a difference to researchers across the country. We continue to respond to Jim's challenge to enhance the lives of our families and friends. We want to be one of his Cinderella teams that cuts down the net on cancer."
Steven Bornstein, President and CEO of NFL Network and a Board member, said, "The V Foundation is a family, and all we want to do is cure cancer, plain and simple......a disease that affects a third of the people on this planet."
Cancer is personal for each of us. Cancer kills about one American every minute of every day, or about 1,500 people during a 24 hour period. One of every two men and one out of three women will get cancer in their lifetimes. Three out of every four U. S. families will have at least one family member diagnosed with cancer.
More than 565,000 Americans died of cancer in 2008. In this country it is the second leading cause of death, responsible for 1 in 4 deaths.
The good news is that cancer researchers have a clear understanding of how cancer evolves. American Cancer Society states that, "We are at a crossroads in the history of cancer research, and we are poised to make expotential gains, to even reduce it to a chronic disease, like diabetes. For the first time in more than 70 years, annual cancer deaths in the United States have fallen."
Nationwide data began to be compiled in the 1930's. Today, 66 percent of adults diagnosed with cancer will be alive in five years, and 80 percent of children with cancer will be alive in five years. With these facts in mind, The V Foundation is moving forward by adding community events and donors every year.
The events are varied and include the Jimmy V Basketball Classic for four men's collegiate teams and the Classic for women's collegiate teams. The Women's Basketball Coaches Association announced it raised $1,362,000 through its WBCA Pink Zone initiative. The Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund in partnership with The V Foundation is the WBCA's Charity of Choice.
Delta Chi fraternity hosted a "V" Day to raise money for The V Foundation, and this led to ESPN founding a "V" Week. Applebees' restaurants in three states have an annual fundraiser that consists of selling paper basketballs to personalize and hang for a dollar donation. This Apple Gold effort has raised $150,000.
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