An A-to-Z look at St. Jude and decades of inspired treatment

More than 70 years ago, Danny Thomas was a struggling young entertainer with a baby on the way. He visited a Detroit church and prayed to St. Jude Thaddeus, the patron saint of hopeless causes. Danny asked the saint to “help me find my way in life, and I will build you a shrine.”

In the years that followed, Danny’s career flourished and he became an internationally known entertainer. Danny remembered his pledge to build a shrine to St. Jude and decided to build St. Jude. More than just a treatment facility for kids with catastrophic diseases, this would become a research center for the children of the world, regardless of race, religion or financial status.