Chase Bryant’s Support for St. Jude Inspired by Brother’s Cancer Fight
Like many in country music, Chase Bryant is a proud supporter of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The rising country star opened up about why he's such an avid participant with the organization, revealing that his brother is a Stage 4 leukemia survivor and that cancer is generational in his family, with his mother defeating skin cancer multiple times and several of his relatives contracting the deadly disease.
He also tells the poignant story of the time he saw a St. Jude poster in Wyoming and recognized one of the kids that turned out to be the child of someone he knew growing up. "That was the first time I had ever donated," he says. "And I remember after donating, I realized that every other kid in this hospital's life is just as important and just as integral as his was."
Bryant admits that before his first visit to St. Jude, he expected to walk into a typical hospital setting complete with doctors and bright lighting. What he encountered was much different. "And then I walked in and I was like, 'This is an enormous house, this is an enormous building full of family,'" he says.
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Just one of the many patients Bryant has bonded with is Tyler, who remembers Bryant every time he comes to visit -- and gets a high-five or plays a game of Go Fish with the country star. "You come in here and you see these kids and it's like they find good in everything," the "Little Bit of You" singer observes. "The minutes that you feel like you can't keep going, there's somebody that's going and could nearly give up."
He also poses an interesting analogy about those who donate to St. Jude, calling the act of kindness a wise investment. "The people that give to this cause, I always say it's better than investing in stock markets. You're saving the kids that are going to run the world at some point in time," he champions. "These are the kids that have empowerment."
On Feb. 16-17, Taste of Country will join 15 Townsquare Media stations in support of the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. This two-day web and radiothon aims to raise money and awareness for the world class research and treatment facility in Memphis, Tenn. Now in its fourth year, this collaborative effort has raised nearly $3.9 million. Country radio has helped raise more than $550 million during 27 years worth of Country Cares radiothons. The mission is simple: raise money, save lives.
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