Friday, November 17, 2023

Hogs Give $1.5 Million to Blair Batson

 Annie Oeth authored the following post for UMMC. 

The New Orleans nonprofit Hogs for the Cause will fund an updated hospital space for children with cancer through a $1.5 million gift to Children’s of Mississippi. 

The donation, raised through the signature Hogs for the Cause barbecue and music festival in the Crescent City, will fund renovation of the fifth floor of the Batson Tower, which was opened in 1997. The construction will include Mississippi’s only pediatric bone marrow transplant unit.  

The 22,500-square-foot unit will be renamed the Hogs for the Cause Wing following construction, which is set to begin in late spring 2024.  

“We are thrilled to provide this donation to Children’s of Mississippi,” said Becker Hall, Hogs for the Cause co-founder and CEO. “This notable gift, combined with our recent gifts to other hospitals nationwide, illustrates how ultra-focused Hogs for the Cause is on improving care for pediatric cancer patients and families all over the country.” 

Dr. Betty Herrington, professor of hematology and oncology, said the gift will improve the care and comfort of her patients. 

Hogs for the Cause is fulfilling a great need we have here in Mississippi, and we are grateful to have them as our newest partner," she said. “Our floor is more than adequate, but treatments change and technology changes. This new space will have a significant impact on the families of those battling childhood diseases such as cancer, leukemia and sickle cell anemia. To refurbish our floor means the world to us and our patients.” 



Children’s of Mississippi provides care to more than 800 cancer patients including about 300 children with brain tumors. The Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children’s of Mississippi has one of the largest sickle cell programs in the country, caring for more than 950 children, adolescents and adults. 

Hogs for the Cause got its start in 2009, when Hall and cofounder Rene Louapre hosted a pig roast behind Audubon Zoo to raise money to help a child with an incurable form of brain cancer. That one fundraiser became what is now one of the largest barbecue and music festivals in the country, welcoming more than 90 local and regional barbecue masters for the competition. The winner is crowned grand champion and is awarded the coveted brass pig trophy. 

The 2023 Hogs for the Cause raised more than $3.6 million to fight pediatric brain cancer. The next Hogs for the Cause is planned for April 5-6, 2024, at UNO Lakefront.  

Children’s of Mississippi joins a list of hospitals helped by Hogs for the Cause, including Children’s Hospital of New Orleans, Ochsner Hospital for Children, Duke Children’s Hospital, Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) Children’s Hospital, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Scottish Rite, and Children’s Hospital of San Antonio. 

The donation comes as the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children’s of Mississippi is undergoing renovations. The project will triple the size of the center’s infusion room and redesign it for more privacy for patients and will bring the number of exam rooms from the current eight to 14. Work is expected to be completed in mid-2024.  


10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Never heard of this group so I looked it up using the link. Want to thank them for their donation to Batson and wish them future success.

Anonymous said...


I am growing weary of the posts promoting the worst hospital system in the entire Southeastern United States. UMMC is a horrific place. Spare your family and loved ones. Do not let them set foot on UMMC property

Anonymous said...

12:53, my wife is alive today because of the excellent care she received at UMMC’s cancer center. I know others who are also alive because of care received through the cancer center. Say what you will about UMMC, but my wife and I are immensely grateful for the care she received.

Anonymous said...

@12:53, you obviously have never visited Blair Batson Children’s Hospital at UMMC. It is a wonderful facility with talented doctors and nurses who save young lives every day.

Anonymous said...

It would be helpful if 12:53 would be a little more specific about why he/she feels that way. My thoughts toward UMMC are not favorable at all, but I would go there if my life depended on it and I did not have any, and I mean any, other options.

Anonymous said...

The University Medical Center has done leading innovative research work for many years and is responsible for saving thousands of thousands of lives.

I pray the complainers and trash talkers who posted above me will never find they are close to death or that their kids are cancer struck, or worse (believe me, there are worse medical problems out there).

If such a terrible thing happens to them, I also pray they will find they have joined the thousands who would have died had it not been for the good doctors, nurses, and technicians who work long hours there.

I am happy and grateful to say I am among those who would be dead had I not gone to University Hospital and a up close and personal relationship with a cardiologist there.

Anonymous said...

Poor Missippi, gotta get charity from Louiana. Say what you want bout dem tigers, but they darn generous .

Anonymous said...

I'll quit bringing it up after this third attempt, but I do hope segregation of duties in the cash chain and a quality accounting system are in place and I'm sure they are.

Anonymous said...

10:06 on 11/18 ---

Little do you know that there are a host of Mississippians that support Hogs for the Cause throughout the year. So it's not just some random NOLA charity.... they had a reason in making this donation to Batson.

Anonymous said...

"The University Medical Center has done leading innovative research work for many years ...."

Back around 1964 a surgeon there performed the world's first heart transplant, then a few months later the same surgeon performed the world's first lung transplant. Each patient only lived a few days, which is how we learned about histocompatibility antigens and their variability, which is now standard testing before pursuing a possible transplant.


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