It is volunteer appreciation week, and we here at the American Cancer Society, want to express our thanks and appreciation for all that you do to fight cancer. If it wasn’t for all of you, we wouldn’t be able to raise $3 million during the pandemic that has changed how we approach this fight. COVID-19 has changed the lives of cancer patients, and their ability to receive treatments. As a result, we have been dependent on volunteers more than in the past to provide support and resources to patients and caregivers who are walking through a challenging diagnosis during a chaotic time.

We all know that this past year is the last thing that we all could have expected, but you all have persevered through the challenges and rallied your communities, whether that be on campus or online. The battle against cancer is a personal one, and all of our volunteers have stepped up to the challenge and exceeded any expectations that we could have had.

We have held 31 in-person events, 65 virtual events, 35 hybrid events, and 51 events in the works.  This has been a team effort, a team of 60,000+ volunteers across the country.

Not only did our college and high school events raise millions of dollars in the past year, we also had successful campaigns such as “Fund The Mission” and “Spring into Action Against Health Disparities”. As college and high school students, we were able to raise $174,324.65 in 72 hours for Fund the Mission which helps ensure that the American Cancer Society can provide the support and resources to patients, caregivers, and survivors that are needed. Spring into Action Against Health Disparities, which was a novel campaign, surpassed our goal and raised $65,000 in 24 hours for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in healthcare. Without the support and drive of our volunteers, we would not have had successful campaigns to continue the mission of ACS.

We wanted to take the time to share the impact that all of our volunteers are making, even in the challenging time of COVID. Thank you for all the time and effort that you have put into your events and fundraising efforts. Thank you for your dedication to a mission that hits too close to home for too many individuals. Thank you for persevering and being innovative during a challenging year. Thank you. We appreciate everything you do for the American Cancer Society and wanted to take time to show our gratitude and celebrate all of you!