This Thanksgiving, Sloan is Grateful to Those Who Help Others

Even though many Americans will sit down to a much smaller Thanksgiving celebration than usual, we’ll nevertheless raise our glasses and say a toast to the things we’re grateful for.

If Sloan could somehow host a Thanksgiving celebration for all our families, employees, customers, vendors, and friends throughout the industry, our toast would be full of thanks to the nonprofit organizations who have persevered through every challenge to help people throughout this incredibly difficult year.

Here’s a partial list of the organizations we’ve supported this year. They—and everyone else who supports them—have our deepest gratitude.

Medical Research and Treatment

The Alzheimer’s Association funds global research to drive risk reduction and early detection, maximizing quality care and support for families coping with Alzheimer’s and all other forms of dementia.

JDRF—formerly the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation—funds type 1 diabetes research and advocates for regulation that makes it easier to market new medical devices.

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, founded in 1884, is the largest and oldest private cancer center in the world.

The Ara Parseghian Medical Research Fund funds research to find a treatment for Niemann-Pick Type C (NPC) disease—a deadly genetic cholesterol storage disorder that primarily strikes children.

Rush University Medical Center includes one of the nation’s top-ranked nursing colleges and graduate programs in allied health, health systems management, and biomedical research.

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital advances cures and means of prevention for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Families never receive a bill from St. Jude.

Children’s Well-being

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Chicago gives nearly 20,000 youth the emotional, educational, physical, and cultural resources to enjoy their childhood and thrive in adulthood.

Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership (HOBY) helps young people explore and identify their unique leadership skills to become catalysts for positive change in their home, school, workplace, and community.

Junior Achievement USA inspires and prepares young people to succeed in a global economy with programs in the core content areas of work readiness, entrepreneurship, and financial literacy.

Special Olympics Illinois unleashes the human spirit through the transformative power and joy of sport, with year-round training and competition in 18 sports for more than 23,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities.

Valley of the Sun YMCA in Arizona serves more than 100,000 families with initiatives, programs, and services for youth, adults, families, and job seekers.

Chicago-based Causes

The Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation, founded by Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo, raises money for cancer research and provides support to families battling cancer.

Beyond Hunger provides hunger relief programming and services to 13 zip codes across Cook County, Illinois, including portions of Chicago and its near-west suburbs.

The Chicagoland Chamber Foundation coordinates educational resources, programs, and research to serve a diverse audience of community leaders, entrepreneurs, business executives, employees, educators, and students.

Chicago Cubs Charities harnesses the passion of Cubs fans to improve the health, fitness, and education of children and families across Chicago and beyond with increased access to sports opportunities.

The Chicago Maritime Arts Center hosts camps and boat-building classes that help kids build STEM skills, vocational skills, leadership, and teamwork.

The House Theatre of Chicago is Chicago’s premier home for intimate, original works of epic story and stagecraft. Its mission is to unite Chicago in the spirit of community through amazing feats of storytelling.

Leyden Family Service in Sloan’s home town of Franklin Park, Illinois, provides a range of counseling, treatment, and preventive care services for adults, adolescents, senior citizens, children, and families.

Schwarber’s Neighborhood Heroes, founded by Chicago Cub Kyle Schwarber, recognizes and supports first responders by honoring their heroism, courage, and devotion to duty.

The Wood Family Foundation, through its Pitch In after-school model, gives 4th- to 8th-grade students the mentoring and unique experiences they need to develop necessary skills for high school.

Other Worthwhile Causes

The American Red Cross delivers vital services, relief, and support to those in crisis in the United States and around the world, as well as teaching lifesaving skills so communities can be better prepared when the need arises.

The Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation is the nation’s oldest and largest provider of need-based scholarships to military children for undergraduate and career technical education programs.

The Mesa Hohokam Foundation is a group of civic volunteers dedicated to Major League Baseball spring training in Mesa, Arizona and to raising funds for local charities and kids’ sports in the East Valley.

The University of Illinois Foundation works with alumni, faculty, corporations, foundations, and campus development staff to create fundraising programs and opportunities that benefit the University of Illinois System.

The VAW/VRC Foundation maintains the USS Midway Museum in San Diego, California, which supports the United States Navy Carrier Airborne Early Warning Command and Control and Carrier Onboard Delivery communities.

The Wounded Warrior Project helps the transition to civilian life for veterans and service members who incurred a physical or mental injury, illness, or wound while serving in the military on or after September 11, 2001.

In addition to supporting these excellent organizations, Sloan supports commercial architects, designers, and engineers with sensible, stylish, water-saving restroom solutions. Like to know more? Talk to Sloan!