In December 2019, the AACR partnered with the St. Baldrick’s Foundation to establish a new scientific achievement award to recognize excellence in pediatric cancer research. The inaugural AACR-St. Baldrick’s Foundation Award for Outstanding Achievement in Pediatric Cancer Research honors an investigator whose work has fundamentally improved the understanding and/or treatment of pediatric cancer. To exemplify the commitment of the AACR and St. Baldrick’s to sustaining the pipeline of pediatric cancer researchers, the award recipient is also given the opportunity to nominate an emerging leader in the field to receive a $75,000 career development award. The inaugural awards were presented during the virtual AACR Annual Meeting in June 2020.
The AACR partnered with Integrated Project Services, LLC (IPS)—an architecture and engineering firm located near AACR headquarters in Philadelphia—to develop a Corporate Social Responsibility initiative. Aligning with a corporate program to promote employee wellness, the initiative engages IPS employees to raise awareness of and funds for cancer research. IPS employees participated in corporate fundraisers to benefit the AACR, and AACR staff conducted seminars for the employees to educate them about the latest advances in cancer research and treatment. This new initiative will serve as a model for future corporate outreach.
In an effort to expand its community of supporters—and to respond to the termination of in-person events as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic—the AACR pursued new fundraising opportunities in 2020:
Jordan Liberty
Cancer Survivor
AACR Ambassador
The AACR continues to enhance its reputation as a vital investment for a discerning philanthropic public. In 2019, the AACR joined FreeWill, an online tool that enables families to create a will at no charge and to establish bequests to their favorite charitable organizations. In 2020, this relationship continued to expand public awareness of the AACR’s mission and led to increased support, as the organization received more than $130,000 in bequests—with an additional $2.7 million in bequests committed from FreeWill users—to support its vital mission.
Annual giving offers all donors an opportunity to support lifesaving cancer research and sustain the mission of the AACR. We gratefully acknowledge those individuals and family foundations who gave $500 or more, and those special events, associations, corporations, and foundations that contributed $5,000 or more during the calendar year.
1907 AACR Founders Society
[AACR Foundation donors whose cumulative (lifetime) giving exceeds $1,000,000]
The Medaled Society
[AACR Foundation donors whose cumulative (lifetime) giving totals $50,000 to $999,999]
We gratefully acknowledge the following individuals who have made an endowed, estate, or other planned gift to the American Association for Cancer Research. Creative gift planning provides an opportunity to make a meaningful commitment, maximize philanthropic objectives, and receive important tax benefits.
All those who have established an estate or other planned gift to the AACR, such as a bequest naming the AACR in their will, are recognized with membership in the Dr. Bayard D. Clarkson Legacy Society. This society honors individuals who have invested in sustaining the future of the AACR and its initiatives so that generations to come may benefit from the leadership and groundbreaking work of the AACR and its membership.
The AACR Sustaining Membership Program is a support mechanism that engages industry partners in the AACR’s mission-based activities year-round.