Law Rocks celebrates grassroot, community efforts, and The Hustle & Heart award is meant to encourage donations for each band’s nonprofit pick. As part of our initiative to increase our impact, we began offering The Hustle & Heart Award at each U.S. Law Rocks show. This award is given to the band that has the highest number of unique donors contributing to the “Donation” category (separate from sponsorships or ticket sales). Law Rocks makes an additional donation to the winning band's charity of choice. We are thrilled to increase our support of small, local nonprofits who would otherwise not be receiving this funding.
Today’s spotlight is on CHANCE FOR HOPE FOUNDATION, recipient of the Hustle & Heart Award at The 4th Annual Law Rocks Houston this past April. Chance for Hope was the chosen nonprofit of Hustle & Heart Award Winner Pro Hac Vice, featuring legal talent from Akin; Enterprise Products Partners; The Friedkin Group; and Harris County Law Library.
We first wrote about Chance for Hope Foundation in June of 2023 when Pro Hac Vice won the Hustle & Heart Award at the Third Annual Law Rocks Houston. Scott Davidson (Chance for Hope Co-Founder, Member of Pro Hac Vice, and Vice President - Chief Legal Officer of The Friedkin Group), shared:
My wife Andrea and I established the Chance for Hope Foundation in 2014 following the loss of our dear son, Chance, to brain cancer at the age of 13. Through our experience as parents of a child battling cancer, we had an intimate understanding of the challenges faced by pediatric cancer families and wanted to establish a charity to provide a variety of much-needed support services, as well as fund critically important research initiatives. It is through the good works of the Foundation that Chance continues to touch the lives of others.
Isaac Davidson, Co-Founder of the Chance for Hope Young Professionals Group, took the stage at the Fourth Annual Law Rocks Houston this past April, sharing an inspiring, heartfelt story to introduce the band. Along with rocking hard, Pro Hac Vice raised nearly $23K for Chance for Hope this year including the $2,000 awarded by Law Rocks for the band’s Hustle & Heart Award win.
We recently checked in to see what’s new since last year’s Nonprofit Spotlight on Chance for Hope, and the organization had some exciting developments to share. Read on to learn all about it!
1) Tell us about your Residence Program and the positive impact it’s had on the community this past year.
“Thousands of families travel to Texas Children’s Hospital (TCH) and M.D. Anderson Children’s Hospital in Houston each year for pediatric cancer treatments. Being two of the largest pediatric cancer and hematology centers in the United States, families travel to Houston from other cities, other states, and even other countries to seek life-saving treatment for their children.
Unfortunately, there is a critical lack of affordable temporary housing for these families who face daunting financial challenges as a result of unanticipated costs related to seeking treatment. Often one or both parents have to quit their jobs or take leaves of absence in order to travel with their children to Houston to undergo cancer treatment. This creates significant financial stress at a time when parents must focus their energy and emotional resources on their critically ill child. As observed by the National Library of Medicine, “[f]or childhood cancer patients, the financial burden on their family is higher than that associated with treatment for adult cancer patients.” Support services provided by Chance for Hope Foundation help to mitigate this financial turmoil.
The centerpiece of the Foundation’s support services mission is the Chance for Hope Residence Program, featuring fully furnished one-bedroom apartments with a queen sleeper sofa to accommodate up to four family members. These residences are offered at no cost to children and their families traveling to Houston for pediatric cancer treatment. The apartments are intended for use of a few days up to six weeks, depending upon need. Each apartment is truly a home-away-from-home including all kitchenware and housewares and equipped with a full-sized washer and dryer in each unit. The Foundation currently operates six individual residences that together provide approximately 2,100 nights of free lodging each year. A shuttle service provides quick access to Texas Children’s Hospital and MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital and Proton Therapy Center
The average cost of a hotel room/day in the Texas Medical Center is very conservatively $150/day. The six apartments provide 2,100 residency days annually, free-of-charge, saving the families utilizing the Residence Program a total of $315,000 annually. In the past year, we were able to serve 34 families with our Residence Program, which results in an average savings of $9,264 per family.
Importantly, our Chance for Hope Residences provide a measure of privacy, space to relax, and a full kitchen that enables families to cut their food bills dramatically by cooking at home (rather than relying on high priced restaurant meals). Further, they can wash/dry their clothing in the comfort of their home without the added stress and expense of utilizing a public laundromat. What sets this Residence Program apart is that there are no “daily fees” or other hidden charges, and the residences are private apartments rather than community living arrangements, which is an important benefit for children with cancer who are immunosuppressed.”
Photo courtesy of Chance for Hope Foundation
2) What are you looking forward to in the coming year?
”The Chance for Hope Foundation will celebrate our 10-year anniversary in October 2024. Since inception we are proud to have served the pediatric cancer community through our impactful programs, which have grown and expanded each year. The following are our accomplishments to date:
We have housed 243 families at one of our Chance for Hope Residences providing a temporary home away from home for pediatric cancer families.
We have delivered 17,878 meals to hungry inpatient families on the cancer floor at Texas Children’s Hospital and MD Anderson Children’s Hospital.
Our Chance for Hope Snack Carts have provided 34,560 snacks to children at four area outpatient clinics.
244 teenagers have made memories and forged new friendships at our Enchanted Night dance for teenage cancer patients.
More than 1,254 children have been provided with gift cards for the purchase of back-to-school supplies and other necessities totaling over $37,620.
Over 2,800 participants have taken part in our annual Chance for Hope Going Gold Fun Run to promote Childhood Cancer Awareness.
Chance for Hope has funded $650,000 in medical research grants to support medical researchers studying improved treatments and cures in the area of pediatric brain tumors.
Learn more about Chance for Hope Foundation.