Pinky Swear talks with Total Country BOB-FM

In honor of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, Pinky Swear Foundation partnered with Total Country BOB-FM to spread the word about the impact that pediatric cancer has on families. Throughout the two weeks, Total Country BOB-FM listeners will hear directly from parents and All-Star kids themselves! Below, you will find a transcript of the interview between Total Country BOB-FM Neil Freeman and our Executive Director, Erica Campbell. If you prefer to listen, you can hear the recording here!

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (00:00)
All right. We have been running a series of public service announcements for an organization called Pinky Swear. Maybe some of our listeners, no doubt, have heard the story, heard the spots talking about how this organization started. Erica Campbell, who is the executive director of Pinky Swear, is in studio with us this morning. Nice to see you.

Erica Campbell (00:25)
Nice to see you. Good morning.

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (00:26)
Yeah. Thanks for coming in, making the trek from the Bloomington area. You told me you've been working with Pinky Swear for seven years. For those who haven't heard the commercials and PSAs that we've been running, tell us a little bit about where this organization started and what the mission is.

Erica Campbell (00:49)
Over 20 years ago, there was a local boy who was nine years old, and he was diagnosed with terminal bone cancer. He was in the hospital one evening, and he overheard a family who couldn't afford Christmas presents, and it broke his heart. So, this nine-year-old boy, right then and there, decided to give away his entire life's savings. Unbelievably generous, to give away his life's savings to other kids in the hospital. And he wanted to do this anonymously. So, he's in his wheelchair. And as he's leaving this envelope on the side of a table next to the family who couldn't afford presents, his wheelchair bumps the side of the door. And he's like, Dad, run, run. And so, you know, Mitch is wheelcharing down the hall. Dad's falling close behind. They get to the elevator and the door is closed. And this nine-year-old boy is like, “Dad, that was awesome.” He's out of breath. He's like, “I loved giving, and I want to do it next year.” They were really honest about their son's diagnosis. And this dad looked down at his son and said, “You know son, I'm really sorry, but I don't think you're going to be here next year.”

Erica Campbell (01:59)
And this nine-year-old boy, with incredible courage and incredible humility, looks up at his dad and he says, “Okay, dad, make me a pinkie swear promise that you will keep doing this after I'm gone.” And this organization was born in that elevator late that night. And it's been 20 years, and we still uphold that pinkie swear promise.

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (02:25)
Hard not to. That is super compelling. If that doesn't move you, then you have your own issues. That's all I can tell you. The organization, now, is the dad and the mom, are they still involved in the organization? Do they have any contact on a daily basis, weekly basis, whatever the case may be?

Erica Campbell (02:53)
Yes, they're still on our emeritus board, and I would say they swing by the office from time to time. Now they're grandparents. They have another child, a daughter who has some grandkids, and they keep coming to the office and they say, “Erica, are you upholding my son's promise?” My Pinky Swear promise. I say, “Yes, sir, I am. “It is what we do today. We provide similar payments, financial payments to families, just like Mitch did 20 years ago.

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (03:23)
Do you work with just Children's Hospital? First of all, if somebody wants to help and contribute, I'm sure you can tell us how they can do that. But if there are families in need, how do you go about finding them, or what are the criteria that you look for to help?

Erica Campbell (03:44)
One of the most beautiful humans on this Earth are the social workers and the nurses in hospitals. They're our primary source of referrals, where families are really struggling. Their world is turned upside down. Social workers physicians, and doctors know about us, and they say, “You know what? Hey, I know you're struggling. I know that this is not only an incredibly emotional journey for a parent or a child, it is an incredibly stressful financial situation.” The social workers, in particular, will recommend Pinky Swear and connect us with them, and we'll help every family we can.

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (04:21)
How do you fundraise? How do you get money? Is it strictly through donations? Do you do events?

Erica Campbell (04:31)
All of the above. One of the primary ways that we fundraise is through individuals that care. We have a lot of people, and I certainly know many of your listeners probably are touched by cancer themselves. Those are the people who really feel moved because they understand how hard it is to have this cancer diagnosis and to keep going on with your life, to keep paying the bills, to keep your job, to keep the insurance, things like that. We rely heavily on individuals. We do have a couple of events. We sometimes have radiothons. We also have online giving, and a lot of kids fundraise for us. We have a really important theme. People see themselves in that niche story. Kids helping kids. It's something really unique to us, too.

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (05:21)
Yeah. It's more than just helping out our Christmas time, right? I mean, it's morphed into so much more than that.

Erica Campbell (05:29)
100%. Well, interestingly, September is not only back to school, it's Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. I think another interesting thing is we say cancer goes on year-round. One of the things that we are really, really interested in is our monthly givers who give 20 bucks a month (or more or less) because that matters. That is going to pay for things like parking at the hospital, getting food to families, and putting gas in their cars so they can get to the hospital.

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (05:58)
There are so many so many needs. I mean, you start to think about it. You talk about families being turned upside down, and you probably don't even know what to think, how to proceed. I mean, what do I do? It's nice to know there's help. You have all your social media and website. Is that best place for people to get more information?

Erica Campbell (06:27)
Absolutely. Our website is www.Pinkyswear.org. Not only can people go there to find more information, they can donate. But if you know a family in need, there's a spot on our website. It says, “Apply for support.” It is really easy. It is a really a great way for families to securely and confidentially apply for help.

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (06:53)
There is, I'm sure, still a lot of need. Oh, my gosh.

Erica Campbell (06:57)
I have to tell you, we have so many requests for support. With inflation, everybody knows housing is more expensive. Everything. Food, gas. I'd say in the last three years, we've seen 2-3 times the number of requests that we have in the past. It is really heartbreaking. I believe in the power of good humans who want to just reach out a hand, and make that pinky swear promise with someone else who’s in need.

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (07:27)
Yeah. The ultimate goal, of course, it's childhood cancer to find ways to put a stop to that and an end to that. But I don't know. There's still a lot of it out there, I'm sure.

Erica Campbell (07:41)
100%. It's interesting. Research is so important. It's not going to help a family today, though. It'll help them five to ten years from now. I really believe in that. But what I love about the work we do at Pinky Swear is it helps a family today, right now, and it's guaranteed to make a difference. It's really like a complementary piece to research. I always joke with my research colleagues. I would say, “I can't wait until you put me out of business and you cure this thing.” That would be the greatest thing ever. Until then, I'm going to keep supporting these families financially, keep them afloat, and make sure their child is the most important thing they get to focus on. 

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (08:21)
Let's take that part of the equation, the financial strain part of the equation, and ease that up a little bit so they can, you're right, focus on the care and supporting their little ones. I don't know. We deal with a lot of different charitable organizations here at BOB FM. We try to treat and help as many as we can. But childhood cancer is a different animal, man. It's just ... as a parent, and there's a lot of parents out there, it's just something I can't even imagine. You can say, “I know how you feel,” but we don't.

Erica Campbell (08:58)
We don't. I have met hundreds of families, and the stories are absolutely heartbreaking. I know your listeners are going to hear some of those over the next couple of weeks. I think what tears me apart the most is I'm a parent as well. I have two kids. And recently, my son was about the same age as that boy I described, Mitch. I can't imagine, and that's what fuels me every day. If that were me, I would want somebody to help me in that way.

Total Country BOB-FM Host Neil Freeman (09:30)
Yeah. Pinky Swear.org is the website Erica is talking about. They're doing wonderful things for these families that are going through unfathomable trouble and hard times. So, if you are so moved and can help out, please do so. You're going to be hearing a lot more about it here in the coming weeks as we continue with our partnership with Pinky Swear. Good to have you here.

Erica Campbell (09:54)
Thank you so much. I'm so grateful for this conversation and for your listeners.

You can learn more about the Total Country BOB-FM partnership here.