April 3, 2002
Captains Needed for Jimmy Fund Volunteer Teams
Jimmy Fund/Variety Club Theatre Collections Program to Run June 21-July 28
Calling all movie lovers who want to make a big difference by supporting cancer research — the Jimmy Fund has just the "job" for you.
This summer, the Jimmy Fund is seeking a few good people to serve as Volunteer Captains during the Jimmy Fund/Variety Club Theatre Collections Program. The program is slated to run from June 21 through July 28 in American Movie Cinemas, Hoyts Cinemas, Loew's Cineplex Theatres, and National Amusements Theatres.
Volunteer Captains would work directly with the Jimmy Fund to recruit and coordinate the efforts of additional volunteers as they collect contributions from patrons of their regional theaters. Their help is needed in scheduling these volunteers, tracking their hours, and working with the theater managers to ensure that collections run smoothly. A commitment of approximately six to eight hours per week over the six-week program would be needed.
Since 1949, volunteers have collected bills and change from generous movie-goers following the playing of a Jimmy Fund appeal trailer. This year's trailer, based on a true story, features pediatric cancer patients being treated at the Jimmy Fund Clinic at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and workers from Boston Iron Workers Union Local 7.
"The Theatre Collections Program is the Jimmy Fund's longest-running fundraiser," said Mike Andrews, chairman of the Jimmy Fund. "It's the dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers who have made it successful and who have helped the Jimmy Fund to raise the chances of survival for those facing cancer around the world."
For their help, Volunteer Captains will be thanked by the Jimmy Fund with a T-shirt, movie passes, and tickets to a Boston Red Sox game at Fenway Park. As an added incentive, the Volunteer Captain who covers the most volunteer shifts during the program will receive two round-trip American Airlines tickets to anywhere in the Continental United States or the Caribbean, Bermuda, or Mexico.
Since 1948, the Jimmy Fund has supported the search for new cancer treatments and helped to provide cancer care for patients at Boston's Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, one of the nation's premier cancer centers. Last year, moviegoers contributed more than $1.3 million to the Jimmy Fund. This year, the goal is to raise $1.75 million.
For more information about how to become a Jimmy Fund Volunteer Captain, call Jennifer O'Hare at (617) 632-3861 or e-mail her at jennifer_ohare@dfci.harvard.edu.
