Washington, D.C., Jan. 17, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- - Hyundai Hope on Wheels to Donate $100,000 Total to Georgetown Lombardi and Children’s National to Fund Pediatric Cancer Research
- Six Contestants Total from Georgetown Lombardi and Children’s National Competing for a new 2024 Hyundai IONIQ6
- Contest runs from 6 p.m. Friday, January 19th to 2 p.m. Sunday, January 21st (L Street Bridge)
- Georgetown Lombardi and Children’s National Celebrating over $7 Million Total in Pediatric Cancer Research Grants from Hyundai Hope on Wheels and The Washington Area Hyundai Dealers
- Hyundai Hope on Wheels Celebrated its 25th Anniversary in 2023
The Washington Area Hyundai Dealers, Hyundai Hope on Wheels, The Washington, D.C. Auto Show, Georgetown University’s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Children’s National Hospital come together annually to fight pediatric cancer through the Hyundai Hands On Hope Contest at The Washington, D.C. Auto Show. In 2019, the longstanding “Hands On” contest at The Washington, D.C. Auto Show took a turn decidedly for the better – the contest would still award a winner a brand new Hyundai, but more importantly, as part of the contest, The Washington Area Hyundai Dealers would provide pediatric cancer research grants to Georgetown Lombardi and Children’s National. Drawing inspiration from Hyundai Hope on Wheels, the new contest was named “Hyundai Hands On Hope.”
Six contestants will compete for a brand-new 2024 Hyundai IONIQ6 over the 44-hour contest period. What makes this contest unique is that the contestants will also be competing for $100,000 in pediatric research grants for their medical centers.
This year’s six contestants will be selected from a pool of employees from Georgetown Lombardi and Children’s National – three contestants will form “Team Georgetown Lombardi” and three will form “Team Children’s National.” As part of this contest, the medical center where the winning contestant works will receive a $60,000 pediatric cancer research grant to move us ever closer to a cure for pediatric cancer. The runner-up medical center will receive a $40,000 pediatric cancer research grant.
“Every 36 minutes a child is diagnosed with pediatric cancer” shared Kevin Reilly, President of The Washington Area Hyundai Dealers, and Vice Chair of Hyundai Hope on Wheels. “As such, we need to do all we can to put funds in the hands of researchers finding cures, and saving children’s lives,” Reilly added.
For Georgetown Lombardi, the grant will fund critical pediatric cancer research. Pediatric oncologist and researcher Jeffery Toretsky, M.D., a professor at Georgetown Lombardi and previous recipient of grant funding from Hyundai Hope on Wheels says such awards allow him and his lab to be more imaginative, even if approaches fail.
“Being a pediatric oncologist at a comprehensive cancer center allows me the tools to aggressively go after novel approaches to creating drugs that are most important for targeting childhood cancer. Our work at Georgetown has led to a current clinical trial in Ewing sarcoma funded by Hyundai and others. Hyundai Hope on Wheels has provided resources for my team to search outside the box in order to achieve new ways to treat cancer in both children and young adults,” said Toretsky, who also serves as chief of MedStar Georgetown University Hospital’s Division of Pediatric, Adolescent, and Young Adult Hematology/Oncology. MedStar Health is Georgetown’s academic health system partner.
Children’s National is also a leader in the fight against pediatric cancer. “Hyundai Hope On Wheels has fueled some of the most promising cancer research projects underway at Children’s National,” said Jeffrey Dome, M.D., Ph.D., Vice President of the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children’s National. “We are grateful to Hyundai Hope on Wheels — and all of the dealerships here and around the country — for their partnership and generous support for research in pediatric oncology.”
The announcement of the $100,000 in financial support was made today by The Washington, D.C. Auto Show President and CEO John O’Donnell and Kevin Reilly, owner of Alexandria Hyundai, President of The Washington Area Hyundai Dealers, and Vice Chair of Hyundai Hope on Wheels.
“The Hyundai Hands On Contest has long been a hallmark event at our show,” O’Donnell said. “We are thankful for the continued generosity of The Washington Area Hyundai Dealers and Hyundai Hope on Wheels in supporting our local medical centers to help the most vulnerable among us in their greatest time of need.”
“Hyundai has a long history of supporting the fight against pediatric cancer and the Hyundai Hands On Hope Contest contributes to that fight, benefiting two innovators in this field, Georgetown Lombardi and Children’s National,” Reilly said. “Hyundai Hope on Wheels is proud to support their great work with $100,000 total in pediatric cancer research grants.”
Hyundai dealers in the Washington, D.C. area, as well as throughout the United States, support Hyundai Hope on Wheels, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that is committed to finding cures for pediatric cancer. Hyundai Hope on Wheels is one of the largest non-profit funders of pediatric cancer research in the country, and primary funding for Hyundai Hope on Wheels comes from Hyundai Motor America and its more than 835 U.S. dealers, including the 19 Hyundai dealers that comprise The Washington Area Hyundai Dealers. In 2023, Hyundai Hope on Wheels celebrated its 25th Anniversary since inception, donating over $225 million in pediatric cancer research grants.
“Hyundai Hope on Wheels has long supported the ground breaking pediatric cancer research undertaken at Georgetown Lombardi and Children’s National, and is proud to have supported over $7 million in pediatric cancer research at these incredible institutions” said Reilly, Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors of Hyundai Hope on Wheels.
The Washington, D.C. Auto Show takes place at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mount Vernon Place, NW, Washington, D.C.
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The Washington, D.C. Auto Show
The 2024 Washington, D.C. Auto Show opens to the public on Friday, January 19 and runs through Sunday, January 28. It is one of the five top auto shows in the United States and is the largest indoor consumer event in the District of Columbia. The show is being held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. For more information on The Washington Auto Show please visit: www.washingtonautoshow.com.
Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center is designated by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) as a comprehensive cancer center. A part of Georgetown University Medical Center, Georgetown Lombardi is the only comprehensive cancer center in the Washington, D.C., area. It serves as the research engine for MedStar Health, Georgetown University’s clinical partner. Georgetown Lombardi is also an NCI recognized consortium with John Theurer Cancer Center/Hackensack Meridian Health in Bergen County, N.J. The consortium reflects an integrated cancer research enterprise with scientists and clinicians from both locations. Georgetown Lombardi seeks to improve the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of cancer through innovative basic, translational and clinical research, patient care, community education and outreach to service communities throughout the Washington region, while its consortium member John Theurer Cancer Center/Hackensack Meridian Health serves communities in northern New Jersey. Georgetown Lombardi is a member of the NCI Community Oncology Research Program (UG1CA239758). Georgetown Lombardi is supported in part by a National Cancer Institute Cancer Center Support Grant (P30CA051008).
Children’s National Hospital
Children’s National Hospital, based in Washington, D.C., was established in 1870 to help every child grow up stronger. Today, it is the No. 5 children’s hospital in the nation and ranked in all specialties evaluated by U.S. News & World Report. Children’s National is transforming pediatric medicine for all children. The Children’s National Research & Innovation Campus opened in 2021, a first-of-its-kind pediatric hub dedicated to developing new and better ways to care for kids. Children’s National has been designated three times in a row as a Magnet® hospital, demonstrating the highest standards of nursing and patient care delivery. This pediatric academic health system offers expert care through a convenient, community-based primary care network and specialty care locations in the D.C. metropolitan area, including Maryland and Virginia. Children’s National is home to the Children’s National Research Institute and Sheikh Zayed Institute for Pediatric Surgical Innovation. It is recognized for its expertise and innovation in pediatric care and as a strong voice for children through advocacy at the local, regional and national levels. As a non-profit, Children's National relies on generous donors to help ensure that every child receives the care they need. For more information, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Also:
Twitter: @WashAutoShow; Facebook: @WashAutoShow
Twitter: @MobilityTalks; Facebook: @MobilityTalks
Twitter: @LombardiCancer; Facebook:@GeorgetownLombi
Twitter: @ChildrensNatl; Facebook: @Childrens.national
Twitter: @hopeonwheels; Facebook:@hyundaihopeonwheels
#HANDSONHOPE #EndChildhoodCancer
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Michaela Watkins Washington, D.C. Auto Show mwatkins@symmetry.agency
