October 22, 2009: From August 15th through September 30th, many local retailers participated in the Austin Hatcher Foundation’s first annual “Shopping for a Cause” program to help raise money and awareness for pediatric cancer. Each store had its own unique program for donating, most based on their sales. The retailers displayed information about pediatric cancer, as well.
The goal of this program was not only to raise monies for the Hatch’s House of Hope, but to educate the community about the devastating effects of pediatric cancer and what the Austin Hatcher Foundation is doing to combat them. The program was designed to allow the Chattanooga community to provide support locally by shopping locally. Participating retailers included Bellies and Babies, Big River Brewery, Bill Shores Frames and Gallery, Cobblestone Rue, Epperson’s Jewelry, Humphrey’s Flowers, Jason’s Deli, Lavender Lime Quilting, Learning Express Toys, Shadowbox Paperie, Wiggle Worm, and Willa Collection.
The Austin Hatcher Foundation for a carefree childhood was formed in 2006 after Amy Jo and Jim Osborn lost their infant son Hatch to a rare form of pediatric cancer. The foundation’s mission is to support research towards the diagnosis, treatment and development of a cure for pediatric cancer, and to provide support and hope to children and families undergoing treatment, as well as those who have lost children due to cancer. The foundation has developed a landmark group of programs and services essential to help cancer stricken children and their families function within their community.
Hatch’s House of Hope is a unique concept designed to keep the family unit whole when dealing with pediatric cancer. Specifically, these services include IEP neurocognitive testing, educational programming to help effected children overcome their cognitive and learning deficits, emotional counseling for the cancer affected child, their siblings and parents, and marital and financial counseling to ensure a safe environment to maximize the family growth as a whole. Erlanger Medical Mall in Chattanooga, TN is the site of the first Hatch’s House of Hope, which opened its doors to the Chattanooga community September 18, 2009. For more information, visit www.hatcherfoundation.org.
