Helping children with cancer and blood disorders is at the heart of the Aflac mission.

Snail mail for survivors

Last Sunday, June 4, commemorated National Cancer Survivors Day. To celebrate life and honor those who are living with a history of cancer, members of the Aflac flock sent handwritten notes to cancer survivors, parents and medical staff who are part of the cancer survivor program at the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. This program helps with the ongoing challenges cancer survivors face because of the disease. Last year, the clinic saw more than 1,000 survivors, and 81.1% of children who completed treatment from 20‌17-20‌19 were seen in the program from 20‌20-‌20‌22.

Child life grants available

The 2023 Child Life, Pediatric Cancer and Blood Disorders Grant application is open until July 31! Ten grants of $1,000 each will be awarded by The Aflac Childhood Cancer Foundation Inc. to programs throughout the U.S. that support pediatric cancer and blood disorders patients and/or their siblings. Recipients will be announced during National Childhood Cancer and Sickle Cell Awareness Month in September. UMC Health System child life specialists in Lubbock, Texas, are shown with Sable of the hospital's pet therapy program, a 2022 grant recipient.

Lions, tigers and My Special Aflac Duck^®

My Special Aflac Duck waddled on the wild side with more than 240 pediatric oncology families at the Philadelphia Zoo. The free event exclusively for childhood cancer patients and their families was hosted by Ronald McDonald House Charities Philadelphia Region and Eagles Fly for Leukemia. Attendees visited more than 1,900 rare and endangered animals and learned about available resources for families and patients, including My Special Aflac Duck, a free of charge resource designed to bring comfort and joy to children age three and up during their cancer journey.

Out for delivery

June marks the one-year anniversary of the My Special Aflac Duck direct-to-family program. Previously only available through hospitals and support organizations, families of children with cancer or sickle cell disease can order ducks to be delivered directly to their home through Aflac’s partner and My Special Aflac Duck creator, Empath Labs. More than 225 robotic companions have been shipped free of charge across the U.S. to diagnosed pediatric patients.

First 2023 Community CareGrant awarded

Aflac awarded a $100,000 Community CareGrant to support Community HealthNet in Gary, Indiana.† Community HealthNet will allocate funds toward constructing a community farm, providing dental supplies and dentures for the uninsured, supplying vaccines and blood pressure medications, and hiring a new nurse practitioner. In addition to this grant, an Aflac Park Bench was installed at Lake Etta County Park as a physical manifestation of the company’s commitment to shine the light on the urgent issue of medical debt.