Serving St. Jude’s Customers

To raise the millions of dollars required to provide treatment and research, thousands of volunteers and donors must be contacted and supported, therefore effectively resulting in St. Jude and ALSAC having two groups of customers to serve . . . patients and donors.

Serve them St. Jude does. It requires over 400 donor services representatives, both employees and volunteers, to coordinate the efforts that support the children being helped at the hospital. Add to this group the hundreds of professional and staff employees involved in treatment and research, as well as the innumerable volunteers around the world who contribute time and energy to raise money for these kids, and you have a web of support that spans the globe. Literally hundreds of thousands of volunteers from all backgrounds support over 25,000 fund-raising events annually. And when you meet any of the representatives of these groups, you will sense the pride and kindness with which they do their work. The values put in place through the prayer of one young man many years ago are still alive and well in this shrine.

There is a quiet dignity about St. Jude. You don’t hear political grumbling, employee complaints, or threats from the management there. Everybody connected with St. Jude quietly goes about their business in a way that makes Memphians glad to be the home of this hospital and research center. From local businesses to the professional golf tour, everywhere around town, the pride that Memphians have in this life-affecting institution is reflected.

Walk through the patient wings of the hospital and notice the murals on the walls, painted with the main themes at a height that young children can enjoy. Notice the sign at the doors of the medicine room that reads, “Please park all trikes before entering.” Pay attention to the smiles on the faces of employees and patients, smiles that come through great pain and inconvenience, and sometimes fear of death. Note the bulletin boards, where staff can post pictures of patients. Observe the looks of love and gratitude on the faces of virtually all the parents with whom you come into contact.

The employees at St. Jude act as if they are on a mission. They are certainly polite and will stop and speak to you, but you can clearly sense that they know what it is they are all about . . . every one of them. It also should be pointed out that these employees are not motivated by stock options, dividends, or money. St. Jude is considered a great place to work, but not because of higher-than normal pay rates. There’s another reason folks want to work there.

I asked an employee in information technology what it is like to have a job at St. Jude. She does not have direct contact with the children and the hospital, but rather provides support for the operation. But her response is typical: “Oh, my gosh! I can’t tell you what it means to me, especially on a bad day, to walk over into the dining room and have lunch with those patients and their families. If I ever feel a need to know my place, that is all I have to do.”