There are many excellent organizations that help fight the dreaded disease cancer.

The V Foundation is one of our favorites. We hope you will consider supporting this worthwhile cause.

It has been just 18 years since The V Foundation for Cancer Research was founded by ESPN and Jim Valvano. And what significant work has been accomplished during that time! Since 1993, The V Foundation has raised more than $100 million and awarded cancer research grants in 38 states and the District of Columbia. Researchers have developed their laboratories and taken their science from the labs to the clinics with the help of funds raised by The V Foundation.

The V Foundation started with the dream of Jim Valvano, the passionate and committed former NC State basketball coach and award-winning broadcaster, as he battled cancer. Wanting to see the battle through to victory, Valvano recruited friends and family to lead The V Foundation in his quest to eradicate the disease that ultimately claimed his life. With a dire need for early developmental, critical-stage grant support, the Foundation was formed to assist the brilliant young researchers that will eventually find cures for cancer.

A relatively young organization, The V Foundation has a strong presence in the scientific community that belies its youth. The Foundation’s Scientific Advisory Board, comprised of some of the top physicians and research scientists from prominent universities and cancer centers nationwide, assures that only the cancer research projects with the most potential are funded. Thus, grant recipients funded by The V Foundation have excellent reputations within the scientific community.

The V Foundation has set specific goals for performance, including, but not limited to:

* Maintaining the lowest overhead among cancer research fundraising organizations

* Continue to increase funding for cancer research year after year; and

* Monitoring performance of scientists through annual reporting .

Beating cancer will require help from all of us.  We are One Team, One Cause.  We ask you to join us. Make a donation. Get involved. Call (919)380-9505 or 1-800-4JimmyV to join the cause.

– The Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald