Luis Fonsi, George Lopez, Morgan Freeman, Dwyane Wade, Jennifer Aniston and Robin Williams Star in St. Jude Thanks and Giving® Campaign Asking Shoppers To Support St. Jude This Holiday Season

USA - English

• Latin America - español

Angelica Vale, Danna Garcia, Alejandro Chaban, Chino y Nacho, Katharine McPhee, Lily Aldridge, Hill Harper, Adam Irigoyen and Elise Neal also lend their voices and talents to support the campaign

MEMPHIS, Tenn., Nov. 9, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- For 50 years, the entertainment industry has embraced the lifesaving mission of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital®. When Danny Thomas set out to build the hospital in 1962, some of the biggest stars of that era such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Elvis Presley, and  Sammy Davis Jr. donated their time and talents to help raise awareness and funds for St. Jude. Today, that tradition continues with celebrities from film, television, music and sports all donating their time and talents to support the 2011 St. Jude Thanks and Giving® campaign. Starting this November, Luis Fonsi, George Lopez, Morgan Freeman, Dwyane Wade, Jennifer Aniston and Robin Williams will join Marlo Thomas, daughter of the founder Danny Thomas, in helping raise awareness and funds for St. Jude, one of the world's premier centers for the research and treatment of pediatric cancer and other deadly childhood diseases.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20111109/DC03883)

For third consecutive year, Luis Fonsi joins St. Jude to record heartwarming national television and radio spots as well as interactive elements online for the Thanks and Giving campaign with Richard, a St. Jude patient from Latin America who battle against cancer and receives medical treatments at St. Jude. The spots will air across broadcast and cable networks in English and Spanish and online. All the spots, as well as exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, will debut at www.stjude.org on Nov. 22.

"It is an honor to be part of the St. Jude family. To have the opportunity to visit the hospital and share with patients and their families fills my heart with hope and joy year after year. The staff of St. Jude, from scientists, nurses and doctors, don't give up to its mission of finding cures and saving children's lives," says Fonsi. "This holiday season, we have to give thanks for the blessings we have every day and give thanks for research and treatment centers like St. Jude making a donation, small or large, can help save lives. I invite you to support my St. Jude family through your most generous donation today."

The popular Venezuelan duo Chino y Nacho joined the Thanks and Giving campaign for the first time.  The artists will use their social media sites to send Facebook and Twitter messages to raise awareness and funds to benefit St. Jude. More celebrities are expected to be announced for the kickoff of the Thanks and Giving campaign.

Created by Marlo Thomas, and her siblings Terre and Tony Thomas, the Thanks and Giving campaign brings together celebrities, media and corporations to ask shoppers to "Give thanks for the healthy kids in your life, and give to those who are not."

The campaign will also get a boost of star power from several new and returning friends of St. Jude that encompass a wide spectrum of the entertainment industry. This year, Univision actress and comedian Angelica Vale and Colombian actress Danna Garcia and Univision actor Alejandro Chaban will participate in the St. Jude Give thanks. Walk.™ in Miami. The star of the upcoming NBC show "Smash" Katharine McPhee will serve as the grand marshal for the event and will walk alongside St. Jude supporters at the New York City walk. Disney stars Elise Neal ("A.N.T. Farm") and Adam Irigoyen ("Shake it Up") will join walkers at the Los Angeles event. On the fashion front, Victoria's Secret model Lily Aldridge is modeling the new DKNY tee from the St. Jude Holiday Gift Book that features a poem written by 10-year-old St. Jude patient Micah. Comedian George Lopez and actor Hill Harper have taken to the airwaves and recorded special radio messages in English and singer Luis Fonsi has recorded messages in Spanish that will air on more than 200 radio stations across the nation during the holiday season.

Thanks and Giving was created to build awareness and raise funds for St. Jude during the season that exemplifies thanks and giving to so many. St. Jude is the nation's leading pediatric research and treatment center that covers all of the costs for treatment, travel, food and lodging for each patient and a family member. To learn more about the Thanks and Giving campaign and to learn about the more than 60 brands participating in the campaign, visit www.stjude.org. 

About St. Jude Children's Research Hospital:
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is internationally recognized for its pioneering research and treatment of children with cancer and other life-threatening diseases. The hospital's research has helped push overall survival rates for childhood cancer from less than 20 percent when the institution opened to almost 80 percent today. It is the first and only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children, and no family ever pays St. Jude for care. For more information, go to www.stjude.org and follow St. Jude on www.facebook.com/stjude and www.twitter.com/stjude.  

SOURCE ALSAC/St.Jude