As a member-hospital of Children's Miracle Network, Palmetto Health Children's Hospital works closely with our partners to raise money for more than 82,000 children treated at Children's Hospital each year. These partnerships enable all children to receive the best healthcare available regardless of a family's financial circumstances. Our partners include CMN national sponsors and other local sponsors who generate funds through special events, employee campaigns, Miracle balloon sales and other innovative programs Other partners include our television sponsor, WIS-TV and our radio sponsor WTCB-FM. Funds are also realized from the hospital's employee campaign and the hundreds of generous donors who "call-in" their support through CMN pledges during the CMN Celebration Broadcast and CMN Radiothon. Funds raised through our CMN fundraising efforts stay right here in our area to benefit the new and existing programs and services offered at Palmetto Health Children's Hospital. Funds are not used for hospital operational expenses.

As our television media partner for more than a decade, WIS-TV generously donates airtime for the televised CMN Celebration Broadcast held each summer to showcase sponsor achievements, our volunteers and of course, our Children's Hospital families. In 2003, WIS-TV partners with CMN and Palmetto Health Children's Hospital for the twelfh year to bring the CMN Celebration Broadcast to the Midlands and other areas.

Palmetto Health's Children's Hospital welcomes our new radio partner WTCB-FM to our CMN family. WTCB-FM produced our first CMN Radiothon in February 2002 with all proceeds benefiting Palmetto Health Children's Hospital. The event raised $85,000.

Throughout the year there are numerous volunteer opportunities with our CMN Campaign, CMN Celebration Broadcast and CMN Radiothon. If you would like to volunteer, please call the Palmetto Health Foundation at (803) 434-7275. CHAMPIONS are the volunteer group for Children's Hospital.

Children's Miracle Network is an international non-profit organization dedicated to raising funds and awareness of its affiliated 170 hospitals. Begun in 1983, CMN's first fund-raising effort was a television special broadcast by 30 television stations and originating from a small studio in Utah. That first year CMN and 22 hospitals in the United States raised $4.7 million.

Now CMN represents a year-round fundraising campaign and community service sponsored program that still includes its televised CMN Celebration Broadcast aired locally on Columbia's NBC affiliate, WIS-TV. The CMN Celebration Broadcast now airs on more than 200 television stations in the United States and Canada. The CMN Campaign annually benefits 12 million children coping with disease, illness and injury. CMN has raised more than $1.4 billion for children's hospitals since its beginning.

CMN's founding pledge, to keep 100 percent of donations in the community in which they were raised remains at the core of its philosophy. Each year thousands of special events are organized and executed under the CMN Champions umbrella in communities large and small across North America. One of CMN's premier events is the CMN Dance Marathon now held in more than 68 CMN markets. We at Palmetto Health Children's Hospital are proud to be the beneficiary of the University of South Carolina's Dance Marathon held each February. Student leaders coordinate the 28-hour event to raise funds and awareness for our hospital. The 2002 Dance Marathon generated more than $60,000 in net revenue.

In 20 years, Children's Miracle Network has evolved into the dominant organization actively providing better health care for millions of children through its affiliate hospitals. The 170 children's hospitals associated with CMN represent the leading facilities in their respective areas and some of the finest hospitals in the world.

Thank you for choosing to make a pledge to Palmetto Health Children's Hospital through our Children's Miracle Network Campaign. All contributions stay local to help sick and injured children at Palmetto Health Children's Hospital. By making a pledge, you will demonstrate a shared belief that every child deserves the right to be healthy and safe. For that, we thank you. Click to open the pledge form.