Kiwanians Take a Stand for Doernbecher

   Portland, Ore.

WHAT:  

Members of the Kiwanis Club of Portland collect signatures to include Doernbecher Children's Hospital in Oregon's Charitable Checkoff Program.

WHEN:  

Tuesday, March 12, 2002, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

WHERE:  

At intersections in downtown Portland -- 5th, 6th and Broadway avenues.

Members of the Kiwanis Club of Portland will take to the streets for Doernbecher Children's Hospital on Tuesday, March 12, 2002. Kiwanians will gather signatures on the corners of busy intersections in downtown Portland between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. They hope to collect 10,000 signatures from registered voters to make Doernbecher eligible for hundreds of thousands of tax refund dollars through the Oregon Checkoff Program.

The Oregon Checkoff Program allows taxpayers to donate all or part of their Oregon income tax refunds to charity. Money directed to Doernbecher Children's Hospital through this program will benefit the children's cancer program.

"We've been raising money for Doernbecher for more than 16 years and this is by far one of the quickest, easiest ways we've seen for people to give," said Huby Newton, co-founder of the Kiwanis Doernbecher Children's Cancer Program. "By donating your tax refund, you can really make a difference in the lives of young cancer patients and their families."

In order to participate in the Oregon Checkoff Program, charities must have received at least $1 million in contributions and revenues the previous year, must be a tax-exempt organization, must provide services to Oregonians that are consistent with the state's policies and programs, and must gather 10,000 signatures from registered Oregon voters by the May 31, 2002, deadline.

Since 1986 Kiwanians throughout North America have supported children's hospitals as national sponsors of the Children's Miracle Network Telethon. Clubs in Oregon and southwest Washington have been leaders in this effort, contributing more than $725,000 to Doernbecher Children's Hospital -- an achievement unmatched by Kiwanians anywhere else in the United States. The Kiwanis Club of Portland, chartered in 1918, was the first Kiwanis Club in Oregon and played a leadership role in establishing the bone marrow/stem cell transplant program at Doernbecher.

Doernbecher Children's Hospital is a key priority for The Oregon Opportunity -- OHSU's $500 million public/private fund-raising initiative to support and expand OHSU programs and initiatives, and to accelerate the institution's research activities. Doernbecher provides both primary and specialized care to nearly 40,000 children annually.

For more information on The Oregon Opportunity or Doernbecher Children's Hospital, contact Lyn Trainer, special gifts and programs coordinator, Doernbecher Children's Hospital Foundation, at 503 294-7101.

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OHSU Communications
503 494-8231