Jaclyn Murphy, the Inspirational Cancer Survivor and Founder of the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation, Receives Her Very Own Upper Deck Trading Card!

CARLSBAD, Calif., April 2, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Jaclyn Murphy has been profiled on HBO's "Real Sports" twice and her inspirational story leaves everyone who has seen those shows deeply affected. She grew up with a love for the sport of lacrosse, but at just 9-years-old doctors discovered she had a malignant brain tumor and gave her a 30% chance of survival. After a tough year of surgery and chemotherapy, she and her family were looking for inspiration. That inspiration came in the form of the women's lacrosse team at Northwestern. The team "adopted" her, and in return she motivated and inspired them like never before. That year, the team brought home their first national title. Jaclyn's father, Denis Murphy, saw the positive impact Jaclyn was having not only on the team, but on others suffering from this insidious disease, and the Friends of Jaclyn charity was formed in 2007.

Dedicated to providing children suffering with brain tumors encouragement and support from collegiate teams, the Friends of Jaclyn charity has paired hundreds of kids with teams throughout the United States. By providing these children and their families with teams of dedicated student athletes and coaches who give love, support and friendship, their quality of life has improved. In turn the athletes have gained a different perspective on life, motivation and the gift of caring for others. And Upper Deck believes strongly Jaclyn's tremendous efforts at helping countless individuals is deserving of a special honor.

This week Jaclyn Murphy heard news she will always remember when her father let her know Upper Deck wanted to create her very own "Heroic Inspirations" trading card. This week she received a larger than life version of the card. Upper Deck will be producing other larger versions that Jaclyn will sign and use for charitable benefits and events tied to Friends of Jaclyn. Upper Deck will also be producing standard card-sized versions that will be donated to Friends of Jaclyn and used for charitable purposes. Upper Deck plans to create trading cards for other kids in the Friends of Jaclyn program as well.

"I don't think Jaclyn ever dreamed she would be on an Upper Deck trading card, so she was shocked to receive such an honor," said Denis Murphy, president of the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation. "We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Upper Deck on this initiative. This is an amazing opportunity for kids and an experience that can only improve the quality of life for brave youngsters in the organization. We are excited to hear who Upper Deck announces as the first child from our organization to receive their very own Upper Deck rookie card."

This is not the first time Upper Deck has created a special card for a child with pediatric brain cancer. In 2013 Upper Deck created a "Star Rookie" trading card for Jack Hoffman, the inspirational young man who was able to fulfill a childhood dream by running a touchdown in for Nebraska during their spring game. Proceeds from the sale of Upper Deck cards made for Jack helped raise over $50,000 to date for the Team Jack Foundation.

"I recently shared with Jack Hoffman's father that while we are happy of the good we have done for the organization, we are not done telling the story of these heroic inspirations," said Chris Carlin, sports marketing manager for Upper Deck. "We realized there were other kids we could help and other great stories we could tell. As the exclusive manufacturer of collegiate licensed trading cards, this is an awesome way to show the power of college sports and the untold inspirations behind many of college's best teams. And there is no person more worthy of the honor of having their own Upper Deck trading card than Jaclyn Murphy. We will leverage the power of the Upper Deck brand to tell more great stories with Friends of Jaclyn in the future."

About Upper Deck

Upper Deck, headquartered in Carlsbad, Calif., is a worldwide sports and entertainment company built on the pillars of quality craftsmanship, authenticity and innovation with a dedication to creating products that turn memorable moments into collectibles. Upper Deck revolutionized the sports trading card experience with anti-counterfeit holograms, high quality card stock and stunning photography in its inaugural 1989 baseball set, and since then its mission has been to capture the excitement of the game and deliver it to fans of all ages. The cornerstone of Upper Deck's business, which opened in 1989, is based on sports trading cards. As its brand has evolved to include other products over the years, the company now creates exclusive memorabilia, gaming products, collectible cards and a wide array of sports trading cards.

Find more information at www.upperdeck.com, www.UpperDeckBlog.com or follow us on Facebook (UpperDeck), Twitter (@UpperDeckSports), and YouTube (udvids).

About Friends of Jaclyn

The Friends of Jaclyn program pairs children suffering with brain tumors and cancer with sports programs, primarily at the collegiate level. The interaction between student athletes and the Friends of Jaclyn kids is often their first glimpse into a world that reminds student athletes how fragile life can be and how strong one can be in the face of adversity. The strength, courage and resilience the child demonstrates often motivates and inspires athletes and teams to levels they had not known, often exposing them to 'giving back' for the first time in their young adult life. This ripple effect reaches far and wide as it spreads awareness about pediatric brain tumors and associates Friends of Jaclyn with the larger pediatric cancer world. There is no chemotherapy, radiation treatment or clinical trial drug more powerful than the love, support and friendship Friends of Jaclyn programs provide.

For more information about Friends of Jaclyn, please visit www.friendsofjaclyn.org.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140402/LA97302 
 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20131008/LA94095LOGO

Contact:
Chris Carlin
1-760-929-3159
[email protected]

SOURCE Upper Deck