NIIC Fundraising for City of Hope Persisted Through Pandemic

Among the things that have become difficult in a year that has been marred by COVID-19, one key problem would seem to be fundraising, since in-person events have been quashed and the economy has been in the dumps.

Overall, philanthropy at City of Hope is still going strong thanks to the insurance industry.

The National Insurance Industry Council reported raising more than $500,000 during the pandemic, which is about 50% of what the NIIC normally raises, but still a sizable figure.

Since 1978, the NIIC has raised more than $32 million that goes to research and efforts to save the lives of patients fighting cancer and diabetes.

The City of Hope is a renowned research institution offering treatments and working on therapies for cancer and diabetes, and since many of their therapies are novel or relatively untried, little funding comes from the government. The institution must instead rely heavily on philanthropic efforts like those of the NIIC.

The NIIC consists of representatives from the property/casualty industry, law firms, brokers, accounting firms, reinsurers, executive placement firms and actuaries in the insurance industry.

“This past year we had to postpone many of our events – Hoops for Hope, Swing for a Cure, Midwest Industry Golf Classic and the Spirit of Life Gala,” said Ken Birkett, director of development for NIIC for the City of Hope. “In 2021, we will be organizing these events in one capacity or another, either virtually or hopefully in-person.”

The NIIC raised roughly $1.1 million through nine events in 2019, putting it in the range of the average $1 to $2.5 million in charitable donations each year through fundraising events.

“Cancer and diabetes do not stop because of COVID-19. And neither will we,” Birkett said. “Our patients are in the fight for their lives. Yet many cancer patients across the country are finding it increasingly difficult to receive the care they need during this crisis.”

The City of Hope marked several big events this year despite the rough time fundraising:

• A cancer-killing virus that City of Hope scientists developed could one day improve the immune system’s ability to eradicate tumors in colon cancer patients.
• City of Hope initiated a phase 1 clinical trial to test one of its investigational SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in healthy volunteers from the ages of 18 to 54 who have not had COVID-19.
• Progress to develop innovative science to address type 1 diabetes.

“Our strength and resilience today are made possible by the generosity our donors have shown us over the years,” he said. “Philanthropy created this organization and it has been a vital accelerator of our research and growth ever since.”

NIIC events often include golf tournaments, bowling tournaments, sports viewing viewing parties, and the annual Spirit of Life Gala, which brings together hundreds of industry professionals.

The Spirit of Life Award gala is NIIC’s key annual fundraising initiative. Each year an honoree is selected for work done in their profession and for their philanthropic efforts. The honoree is given The Spirit of Life Award, City of Hope’s top honor. Past recipients include: Mike Miller, president and CEO of Scottsdale Insurance Co.; Christopher J. Swift, chairman and chief executive officer of The Hartford; and Tony Markel, the name and the man behind building Markel Corp.

Birkett said the hope is to be able to have live events during the fall of 2021.

“Patients’, donors’ and event attendees’ health are our highest priorities,” he said. “We are taking all possible preventive measures and proactively modifying our approach as needed. This year has taught us that we need to be adaptable.”

The City of Hope operates on a budget of more than $1 billion per year and employs roughly 4,000. The Duarte, Calif.-based facility has some impressive accolades. Here are a few:

• Numerous breakthrough cancer drugs.
• Millions of people with diabetes benefit from synthetic human insulin, developed at City of Hope.
• The facility was a pioneer in bone marrow and stem cell transplants.
• Surgeons at City of Hope have performed more than 10,000 robotic procedures for prostate, kidney, colon, liver, bladder, gynecologic, oral and other cancers.
• Scientists at the facility pioneered the application of blood stem cell transplants to treat patients with HIV and AIDS-related lymphoma.
• Researchers there used a new form of gene therapy to achieve the first long-term persistence of anti-HIV genes in patients with AIDS-related lymphoma. This ultimately may cure not only lymphoma, but also HIV/AIDS.

Topics COVID-19