Thank you for helping to raise critical funds for JoyRx programs. Because of you more children can experience companionship and connection during their hospital stays.
About Children’s Cancer Association
Children’s Cancer Association was founded in 1995 by the Ellis family after their five-year-old daughter, Alexandra, died of cancer. Their goal was to create something extraordinary: an organization with a new vision for joy-based pediatric cancer support services.
Today, Children’s Cancer Association helps sick kids feel like kids again through our JoyRx Music, Mentorship, and Nature experiences. These free-of-charge pediatric enrichment services empower children to laugh, play, and find their joy even during life’s most challenging moments.
Last year, JoyRx Programs served over 42,000 kids and their family members across the country — filling a critical gap in services for hospitalized youth that no one else was addressing.
JoyRx Mentorship fosters trusted companionship to inspire friendship and distraction. The only program of its kind in the nation, our trained, adult volunteer JoyRx Mentors provide emotional support to children in treatment and to parents who endure the hardships of long hospital stays with their child.
100% of parents reported: “What happens in JoyRx Mentorship helps my child.”
JoyRx Nature provides an essential connection to the natural world. Nestled in 24 acres of surrounding woods with plentiful wildlife and a serene lake, JoyRx Nature’s Alexandra Ellis Caring Cabin at the Oregon Coast provides children in treatment and their extended families with a place of peace in a calming environment.
100% of parents surveyed said the time at the Cabin provided their family a chance to connect with each other.
JoyRx Music, our flagship program, has drawn on the universal power of music to help hospitalized children feel better even during life’s most challenging moments.
100% of hospital partners report JoyRx programming helps to create a positive hospital experience for children (up from 93% last year).
Learn more about our programs at JoyRx.org/Programs
Fundraising tips
Not sure where to start? Here are three simple tips to kick things off:
1. Personalize Your Fundraising Page
Why does this cause matter to you? You can personalize your page with your story by 1) Clicking on the circle with your initials in the upper right corner of the screen, then select My Account. 2) Select the My Participants tab, click on your name, then select View Fundraising Page. 3) Click on the text or image you want to update (e.g., click on the title to change the title text; click on the banner image to change the image, etc.). After making your changes, click out of the area you just updated to save automatically.
Having trouble with this?
Contact our Coordinator for some help at jferguson@joyrx.org
2. Donate to Your Own Page
Did you know? People are more likely to donate if someone else has already contributed. Plus, donating to your own fundraiser shows people you’re serious about the cause.
3. Set Mini Fundraiser Goals Along the Way
Want to get others motivated? Mini-goals help build momentum to reach your main goal. Plus, reaching milestones along the way lets you share updates on social media to create urgency for upcoming deadlines or thank your friends and family for helping you reach that goal.
How to ask:
1. Share Your Why: What’s the need you’re trying to address, and why is it important to you?
2. State Your How: Tell your supporters what you’re doing to help raise funds.
3. Make Your Ask: Let them know how they can support you.
4. Say Thank You: Write a short note to express gratitude for their support.
Email Templates
Kick off your fundraising efforts by sending an email to each of your prospective donors.
Directly contacting folks is a great way to ask for donations — and can lead to great success. These emails can also be used in direct messages sent through social media for a one-on-one touch.
If you aren’t someone who usually sends an email, you can also let people know (via social media or texting) that they should expect an email from you soon. This can help build connection and urgency.
Use these templates to get started and personalize as you see fit — or send as is!
General or First Email
Hi [NAME],
I hope this message finds you well — I’m reaching out to tell you about a fundraiser I’m holding to benefit Children’s Cancer Association. This nonprofit delivers the transformational power of joy to help seriously ill children improve their emotional well-being, and their JoyRx Mentorship program is a cause near and dear to my heart.
To help raise money for JoyRx Mentorship, an important program that helps create friendship, connection, distraction, and laughter for children in the hospital, I’m hosting a fundraiser. As part of this fundraiser, I’m committed to raising [$$] — and I need your help!
Please follow the link below to learn more about JoyRx Mentorship and support me in raising these critical funds. Thank you for your generous consideration!
Joyfully,
[INSERT NAME]
[INSERT LINK TO FUNDRAISING PAGE]
Be sure to check in as you go! Keeping your prospective donors updated on your fundraising efforts helps build momentum, foster support, and connect with everyone.
From the beginning of treatment to graduation, mentors like Karlee are their for their mentees like Ailani.
Progress Report Email
Dear [NAME],
Happy [DAY OF WEEK]! I wanted to update you on my personal goal to raise [$$$] for Children’s Cancer Association, through my JoyRx Mentorship Program fundraiser.
I’ve raised [$$$] so far — and I’m so grateful for the support, encouragement, and shares of my efforts. I still have time to raise more funds, and I hope you can help! Please visit the link below to learn more about the JoyRx Mentorship Program and to make a tax-deductible donation if you haven’t already.
[INSERT LINK TO FUNDRAISING PAGE]
I hope you’ll also share my fundraising page with anyone who you think might be interested in supporting, too. The more people who help, the more seriously ill children will benefit from the power of joy.
Finally, a huge thank you to all the people who have supported me so far [INSERT SUPPORTER NAMES HERE]; I couldn’t do this without them! Would you consider joining them?
Joyfully, [INSERT NAME]
Thank You Email
Dear [NAME],
Thank you so much for supporting my fundraiser by giving to Children’s Cancer Association. Your donation is making a huge difference in the lives of seriously ill children and their families.
Together, we can support children and families with the power of friendship through their JoyRx Mentorship Program. Your generosity directly supports matches between JoyRx Mentors and their mentees, creating a new friendship that helps kids feel like kids again, not just patients.
Thank you for making this joy possible. Your support of my fundraiser means the world to me and to many others.
Joyfully, [INSERT NAME] [INSERT LINK TO FUNDRAISING PAGE]
Social Media Templates & Graphics
Help us spread the word and let your social network know how they can support you. (We bet you could write something far cooler and more personal than we ever could, but just in case — here are some suggestions to get you started!)
1. Follow & Tag
@CCAJoyRx
2. Post on Social Media with the samples provided below:
• Customize the posts provided to let everyone in your social network know how they can support you.
• Please make sure to tag JoyRx and use our hashtags in your social posts! #JoyRxMentorship
• Links can be tricky on social media! If you have trouble adding links in your captions—especially on platforms like Instagram—consider adding the link in your bio instead. You can do this by tapping the “Edit Profile” button located near the top of your Instagram profile, pasting your link in the website field, tapping done, and directing your audience there by saying something like, “Link in bio!” so followers know where to click.
I believe joy is essential for seriously ill children. That’s why I’m participating in a fundraiser to raise [$$$] for Children’s Cancer Association. Join me in creating joy for sick kids with their JoyRx Mentorship Program! <LINK to fundraising page>
Joy for seriously ill children shouldn’t be an exception; it should be part of their regular care. That’s why I’m participating in a fundraiser for Children’s Cancer Association. Help me support their joy-based programs for children who need it most! <LINK to fundraising page>
I’ve raised [$$$] for Children’s Cancer Association, to help deliver friendship experiences to kids facing serious illness — How awesome is that? Help me create more joy with a donation: <LINK to fundraising page>
I’m teaming up with Children’s Cancer Association to raise funds and create joy for seriously ill children. For families grappling with pediatric illness, every moment is precious. Please join me in supporting their powerful JoyRx Mentorship program today by making a donation to my #JoyRxMentorship fundraiser. <LINK to fundraising page>
Turning in Donations
Online Donations
Any donation made through your online fundraising page will receive an automatic receipt through Children’s Cancer Association’s donation platform. There’s no need to keep track of these donations.
Offline Donations (Cash or Checks)
To receive credit on your fundraising event page, cash and check donations must be mailed to the Children’s Cancer Association office:
Children’s Cancer Association
1200 NW Naito Parkway, Suite 140 Portland, OR 97209
Check Donations
Checks should be made out to “Children’s Cancer Association.”
Write your name in the memo line so JoyRx knows to credit your fundraising page.
We will send a thank you note/receipt to donors using the address on the check.
Cash Donations
If cash donors would like a receipt, please provide the following donor information:*
Name
Address City, State, Zip
Phone
Total Donation
*Donors will receive a thank you note/receipt from a staff member who will update your fundraising page with the donation and your new total. Please allow five business days from receipt for the update.
Matching Gifts
You may have friends and family who work at companies who provide charitable matching donations — this will help you reach your goal by doubling your incoming donations!
If interested in this type of donation, you can learn more by visiting our website.
Help Us Find New Mentorship Volunteers
If you know someone who would be a good fit for our Mentorship program, we would be honored to have you refer them!
Know before signing up:
There are some key requirements to be a JoyRx Mentor.
Volunteers will have to complete a thorough screening and training process to ensure that they are safe and healthy to be working with children and able to make this commitment. They will need to participate in an in-depth interview, pass a background check, complete hospital-specific paperwork and an immunization review, as well as other screening procedures that are in line with mentoring best practices.
Additionally, we require a minimum one-year commitment from the time the mentor is matched with a child as well as time to commit to six to eight hours towards the relationship per month.
Steps to sign up:
The Joy You Create
Through your efforts to fundraise $2,500, which funds one mentorship match for a full year, you allow us to reach more children in need of friendship during a trying time.