Suppose your only option for transporting your sick child to life-saving medical care was to use public transit. Imagine the physical and emotional strain—not to mention the risk of exposure to infection—of having to ride a bus, for instance, in order to reach the medical center where your child receives chemotherapy or a blood transfusion for sickle cell disease. Or, suppose you did not even have access to public transit and had no affordable way to transport your child to treatment at all.

 Thanks to the generosity and compassion of a single family, children treated at St. Barnabas and their families never have to worry about how they will get to treatment and check-ups. A four-year gift funds a private van that transports patients to the Center, free of charge. This ensures that every child is able to receive his or her treatment on a regular basis without added expense or strain on the family. The van also provides privacy and a sense of safety for the patient, particularly important if he or she is experiencing side effects from treatment.

A transportation fund for patients at other centers  is made possible through donations of all sizes.

The Valerie Fund hopes to expand this service at other centers in the future.

“I like the van because the driver plays funky loud music. He picks me up at my house and drives me to my house at the end. It is like The Valerie Fund limo!”

                                                                                                             ----- Jesus,age 11

If you could like to learn about specific funding opportunities for this program, please contact Lori Abrams at (973) 761-0422 or LAbrams@TheValerieFund.org.