Richfield, MN, 2016-Feb-12 — /EPR Retail News/ — The recent St. Jude Thanks and Giving® campaign at Best Buy was the most successful one yet, but it’s the faces behind the cause that really matter. And this week, a group of Best Buy store general managers (GMs) got to see those faces, in person, at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®.
The GMs were from the stores that led the company in dollars donated or the percentage of transactions with a donation attached. As recognition for their fundraising, the leaders got to tour the hospital in Memphis and meet with patients and families. The leaders also ran Geek Squad activities that included coding, circuits and showing how music keyboards and game controllers work.
“It’s amazing to come here,” said Tommy Mejia, general manager of Best Buy Store 419 in Salem, N.H. “I felt last year how positive everyone is here and how the money we raise goes to the mission of helping kids fight cancer. This year I got to go in the lab and talk to the researchers who are working to crack the code on cancer.”
Sharon McCollam, Best Buy’s Chief Administrative Officer and Chief Financial Officer, presented St. Jude with a check for $10.2 million.
“Every time I come to St. Jude, I am overwhelmed not just by the standard of care the families are receiving, but also by the compassion, empathy, love and commitment of the St. Jude staff,” Sharon said. “We are humbled and grateful to partner with St. Jude once again.”
Best Buy welcomes the St. Jude Thanks and Giving campaign in its stores and online annually during the holiday season. Thanks to the generosity of Best Buy customers, this year the company made its largest donation yet. The contribution may help in any number of ways, including:
- The ability to fully operate St. Jude for more than 5 days or
- Providing 1,020,000 meals for St. Jude patients or
- Covering the cost of 6,919 days of chemotherapy or
- Paying for bone marrow transplants for 55 children or
- Financing 2,040 days in the ICU
Every dollar will help St. Jude remain at the forefront of the global effort to research, treat, and defeat childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. In addition, the financial support helps ensure that no family will ever receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food. To learn more about St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, please visit www.stjude.org.
SOURCE: Best Buy