Carnival Cruise Line, who serves as St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital’s official celebration partner, has been named the organization’s “Corporate Partner of the Year.”
The award was presented on Tuesday to Carnival President Christine Duffy by Richard Shadyac, Jr. president and CEO of ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude. The partnership between Carnival and St. Jude began in 2010, and the cruise line came up with a number of unique ways to promote the organization’s lifesaving work, part of their fleetwide Care to Play: Carnival for St. Jude Kids program.
“Our sincerest thanks to Christine and the entire Carnival Cruise Line team for the collaborative spirit in which they have approached our partnership not only over the last year, but throughout its entirety,” said Richard Shadyac Jr., president and CEO of ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. “They are all to be commended for their steadfast commitment to our lifesaving mission, raising critical funds to help expand it around the globe and for expressing so many acts of kindness and goodwill to so many of our patients and their families.”
One of the newest places St. Jude is made aware to cruise guests is on the LED Dreamscape atrium sculpture aboard the new ship Carnival Horizon. On a rotation throughout the day with other graphics, artwork by 33 St. Jude patients is displayed on the massive funnel-shaped screen. Some of the artists and their families were recognized during the festivities, which included comments from Shadyac and Horizon‘s godmother Queen Latifah.
Carnival’s fundraising efforts for St. Jude include the following initiatives:
- Groove for St. Jude onboard dance party
- Sale of sweets onboard, including the special Brownie Buoy ice cream flavor sold at Carnival Vista‘s Cherry on Top shop
- Annual Thanks and Giving campaign at US embarkation ports
- Sale of special merchandise during cruise voyages
The cruise line also hosts an annual Day of Play, a themed in-hospital event with activities for kids and their families. They also provide ongoing support for St. Jude with cruise giveaways, employee participation in the St. Jude Walk, event sponsorships, and other initiatives.
Tags: Carnival Cruise Line
