NEW ORLEANS — Hogs for the Cause said it has surpassed $10 million in grants and contributions since its inception in 2009. Hogs is a New Orleans-based nonprofit that provides financial assistance to the families of children undergoing treatment for brain cancer.
Becker Hall, Hogs co-founder and CEO, said his organization has presented more than 1,800 direct family grants, totaling $2.3 million, and has formed strategic partnerships with hospitals nationwide to aid families with children diagnosed with ailments other than brain cancer.
“We raised $7,500 our first year and thought that was an amazing number to give,” he said. “Never could we imagine that, 15 years later, we’d surpass $10 million in giving.”
In addition to family grants, Hogs tallies nearly $9 million in contributions to nine beneficiaries across the Southeast: Children’s Hospital New Orleans, Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital in Baton Rouge, Children’s of Mississippi in Jackson, Prisma Health Children’s Hospital – Upstate in Greenville, S.C., Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Ochsner Hospital for Children, Medical University of South Carolina Children’s Hospital, The Cure Starts Now (pediatric brain cancer research grants) and Children’s Hospital of Atlanta Scottish Rite.
Most recently, Hogs announced a $1.5 million gift to Children’s of Mississippi for the renovation of a 22,500-square-foot “Hogs for the Cause Wing” dedicated to inpatient beds for children battling cancer and blood disorders and a $1 million contribution to Prisma Health Children’s Hospital – Upstate for an inpatient unit at the Greenville, S.C. hospital to treat children, adolescents, young adults and adults with childhood hematologic and oncologic diseases.
In 2022, Hogs broke ground on a Hogs House on Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital campus in Baton Rouge with a $2.25 million donation. The 6,900-square-foot facility will serve as on-campus housing for any family from the Baton Rouge area or other regions of the state who have a child receiving ongoing healthcare treatment at the children’s hospital.
“It has always been our mission to provide financial relief to families so that they can focus on their child’s health and not the variable expenses that continue to add up during treatment,” said Rene Louapre, co-founder and chief operating officer of Hogs. “As our fundraisers continue to grow, we can reach more and more families, but the need also continues to grow as pediatric brain cancer is the leading terminal cancer in children in the U.S. So, we can’t stop now.”
Hogs for the Cause will celebrate its sixteenth year April 5-6, 2024, on the grounds of the UNO Lakefront Arena.
