By Rebecca Chaisson
Managing Editor
More than 5,000 pounds of boiled mudbugs were sold last week across three locations as local volunteers with FUNraisers for St. Jude hosted their popular “Crawfish for a Cure” fundraiser.
The all-volunteer organization, which has grown to more than 100 members throughout Acadiana, directs 100 percent of every dollar raised straight to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
“Every year, we have multiple fundraisers throughout the year,” said longtime volunteer and organizer David Reed. “Our ultimate goal is to raise $400,000 for St. Jude this year.”
The group is already well on its way. Last year, FUNraisers raised $332,000 and was recognized as one of the top five fundraising teams in the nation — with four of the top five teams coming from Louisiana, he said.
Reed and his team have been making the trip to Memphis every December for six or seven years to run the St. Jude Marathon and personally deliver their donation.
“Since we started, we have raised over one million dollars,” Reed said. “We’ve grown to a little over 100 volunteers, and 100 percent of what we raise goes to St. Jude.”
The organization hosts a full calendar of events, including the third annual “Prom with a Purpose – Mom Prom” set for Saturday, June 6 at the Iota Spring Ballroom. Last year’s event drew more than 250 people and raised nearly $17,000. Other major fundraisers include the Zydeco Marathon (which brought in $53,000 in March); a rodeo in New Roads that raised $30,000; Bingo on Kentucky Derby Day; and the upcoming Concert for a Cure at Evangeline Downs featuring headliner Frank Foster. The group also took over the KBON music festival last October.
While volunteers dished out crawfish outside the Eunice Superette and other locations, the true impact of their work was visible in the faces of local families they were serving.
Candace Fontenot volunteered at the boil in honor of her 10-year-old granddaughter, Nora Fontenot, a student at Richard Elementary School and a proud St. Jude survivor.
“As of January, my granddaughter is no longer a St. Jude patient — she is considered a St. Jude survivor,” Fontenot said. Nora was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) at just four years old and underwent two and a half years of chemotherapy.
Thanks to St. Jude and its Louisiana affiliates, Nora was able to receive most of her treatments close to home after her initial appointment in Memphis.
“St. Jude takes care of everything — travel, food, lodging,” Fontenot explained. “Louisiana is one of the only states that has two affiliates. When you have a sick child, that kind of help means everything. It lets parents focus on their child instead of worrying about bills.”
St. Jude accepts whatever insurance pays and never bills families for the difference — a policy that has been a lifeline for many local families facing cancer.
Fontenot now gives back as a volunteer because she wants to repay the blessings her family received.
“It feels amazing that I still get to look at my healthy granddaughter every day,” she said. “I don’t think people realize how many local kids go to St. Jude.”
Also stopping by the crawfish boil were Dylan and Elaina Navarre of Iota, who ordered 12 bags of crawdads with their son, 10-year-old Ryker. The Navarre family has long supported St. Jude, but last year their role changed when Ryker became a patient himself. He is currently undergoing treatments for synovial sarcoma.
(See an upcoming edition of the Eunice News for more on Ryker’s story.)
Through events like their fourth annual Crawfish for a Cure, FUNraisers for St. Jude continues turning Acadiana’s love for good food, music, and community into life-saving support for children battling cancer.
For more information about upcoming events or how to get involved, locals can reach out to the FUNraisers team through their Facebook page or by contacting organizer David Reed.
